Unemployment claims drop 18,000 in latest week

New claims for unemployment benefits fell 18,000 in the week ended April 27, to 324,000 from a revised 342,000 the week before, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Claims were at their lowest level since January 2008.

The 4-week moving average of claims was 342,250, down 16,000 from the previous week's revised average of 358,250.