Layoffs lowest since Nixon era

Not since 1969 have so few Americans applied for unemployment benefits. Labor Department data show initial jobless claims declined 24,000 to 209,000 last week, the lowest since “early in the Nixon Administration,” The Wall Street Journal says. The measure of layoffs across the U.S. suggest that the labor market is reaching “full employment,” with the rate at 4.1%, and that the central bank is more likely to raise interest rates.