You would think that after four years of this economists would revise their expectations. But no. Again, initial jobless claims came in higher than expected. But the drop in claims looks good because last week’s number was revised up to 371,000 from 368,000.

Applications for jobless benefits dropped 5,000 to 366,000 in the week ended Feb. 2, Labor Department figures showed today. Economists forecast 360,000 claims, according to the median of 53 estimates in a Bloomberg survey.

Claims, after see-sawing in prior weeks as the government had trouble adjusting the data for seasonal swings, are settling at a level that signals there is little change in the pace of firings from last year. The data come after a report last week indicated employers are boosting payrolls at a faster pace as demand holds up. (Read More)

They make it sound like 366,000 Americans losing their jobs is good news.

Oh, and productivity took a nose dive. What a shock.