More signs of an improving labor market have arrived, as the Labor Department released new figures showing that claims for jobless benefits are matching the lowest level in four years.

Claims ending the week of March 10 fell by 14,000 to 351,000, says Bloomberg News, which is lower than the median estimate forecast by a Bloomberg News survey of 375,000.

Companies aren’t firing people as fast or as often and are instead working to expand their workforces, as the U.S. saw an increase in new jobs for February. Combine that with rising retail sales and an uptick in consumer confidence, as well as decreasing worry over a European default, and you’ve got a pretty positive picture.

Things are still moving slowly, say experts, but the economy and labor market are going in the right direction. Slow and steady wins the race, right, tortoise economy?

Jobless claims in U.S. Decrease, Match Four-Year Low [Bloomberg]

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