WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of people seeking unemployment benefits dropped last week to the lowest level in four years, adding to evidence that the job market was strengthening.

In addition, the government confirmed that the nation’s economy grew 3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011.

Applications for weekly unemployment benefits fell by 5,000, to a seasonally adjusted 359,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was the fewest applicants since April 2008.

The four-week average of jobless claims, a less volatile measure, declined to 365,000 — the fewest for that measure since May 2008.