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Jobless claims drop
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May 18, 2000: 9:15 a.m. ET
First-time state unemployment filings fall by 21,000 in latest week
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell to 276,000 for the week ended May 13 from 297,000 the prior week, the U.S. Department of Labor said Thursday.
The four-week moving average of claims, which generally provides a more accurate picture of jobless trends, rose to 289,750 from 285,250 for the period. With this report, the U.S. four-week moving average extended its under 300,000 run to 30 straight weeks -- however, the current figure is also the highest since 290,000 in the Jan. 15 week.
Continued claims were 1,957,000 for the May 6 week, the latest data available, from the revised 2,000,000 reported the previous week.
Five states - California, Kentucky, Michigan, Alabama, and Georgia -- reported an increase in claims of more than 1,000 in the week ended May 6, the latest period for which data are available.
California pointed to layoffs in the entertainment industry, while Kentucky reported more layoffs in the electrical equipment industry. Michigan blamed
layoffs in automobile and fabricated metals industries. Layoffs in the textile, trade and service industries were cited by Alabama, while Georgia reported layoffs in the food industry. 
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