Unemployment claims drop to 196,000, lowest level since mid-July, beating expectations

The number of people applying for unemployment benefits dropped sharply last week, signaling the country is seeing few layoffs. 

The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims fell to 196,000, the fewest since mid-July and down from 206,000 the week before, ABC News reported. 

The four-week average for claims, which removes volatility from the unemployment figures, dropped to 203,250. For the past year, jobless claims have remained within a historically low range of 200,000 to 230,000 per week. 

Economists had expected the figure this week to come in at 207,500, according to a survey from FactSet.