Two years of steep job cuts all but ended last month, unexpectedly pulling down the unemployment rate and raising hopes for a lasting economic recovery.
The number of newly laid-off workers filing first-time claims for jobless benefits fell to the lowest level since early January, as layoffs ease a bit amid a fledgling economic recovery.
The country's growing unemployment is overtaking subprime mortgages as the main driver of foreclosures, according to bankers and economists, making the crisis more complicated to unwind.
