217,000 new U.S. unemployment claims...Lowest in half a year

The U.S. Labor Department said 217,000 new unemployment claims were filed last week, down 4,000 from a week ago.

That was the lowest reading in six months since mid-May, slightly below Dow Jones' 220,000 expert projections.

The number of "continued unemployment" claims filed for unemployment benefits for more than two weeks reached 1.873 million in the last week of October, down 11,000 from the previous week.

New unemployment claims increased significantly in early and mid-October due to Hurricane Hurlin and Milton damage and then slowed again.

Wall Street is paying close attention to job market trends, with concerns still lingering about the U.S. economic outlook.