If you’ve watched Wall Street lately, you know global tumult has rattled investors. But if anyone’s looking for encouraging economic news, look no further than If you’ve watched Wall Street lately, you know global tumult has rattled investors. But if anyone’s looking for encouraging economic news, look no further than the new figures from the Labor Department on initial unemployment claims.

The number of people who applied for U.S. jobless benefits fell 23,000 to 264,000 in the week that ended Oct. 11, hitting the lowest level since April 2000, showing that employers are laying off few workers, according to government data released Thursday. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had expected initial claims for regular state unemployment-insurance benefits to bump up to 289,000 in the latest weekly data from 287,000 in the prior week. The four-week average of new claims, a smoother barometer of labor-market trends, fell by 4,250 to 283,500, also reaching the lowest level since 2000, the U.S. Labor Department reported.

That’s not a typo – jobless claims have improved to a level unseen in 14 years,

That said, to reiterate the point I make every Thursday morning, it’s worth remembering that week-to-week results can vary widely, and it’s best not to read too much significance into any one report.

In terms of metrics, when jobless claims fall below the 400,000 threshold, it’s considered evidence of an improving jobs landscape, and when the number drops below 370,000, it suggests jobs are being created rather quickly. At this point, we’ve been 300,000 in 9 of the last 19 weeks.