This is a welcome surprise; the trend in claims in recent weeks has been strongly upwards.

There's no question that these numbers have been persistently disappointing in recent weeks, ... It's not that layoffs are accelerating again -- we think the underlying trend [of claims] is stable at about 390,000 -- it is that we expected clearer signs of an outright decline [in the number of claims].

This increase reflects the upturn in the markets in recent weeks; any further gain in the near-term requires a further firming of stocks,

Claims fell because the initial wave of job losses after Sept. 11th is fading.

This [report] suggests strongly that the distortions caused by the provisions of the March economic stimulus package are now fading and that the underlying -- downward -- trend in claims is starting to re-emerge,

We've had discussions over the recent weeks and months.