US weekly jobless claims fall to 386,000 WASHINGTON - The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment benefits fell last week, but the level of applications remains too high to signal a pickup in hiring. The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications fell to a seasonally adjusted 386,000. That's down from 392,000 the previous week, which was revised up. The four-week average, which smooths week-to-week fluctuations, was mostly unchanged at 386,750. When applications rise above 375,000, it generally means that hiring isn't strong enough to rapidly lower the unemployment rate. Applications fell steadily over the winter, and monthly job gains soared. But since then applications have edged up and hiring has slowed, raising concerns about the recovery. Employers added an average of only 73,000 jobs per month in April and May. That's much lower than the average of 226,000 added in the first three months of this year. Other recent indicators have painted a mixed picture of the economy. Factories produced less in May than April, the Federal Reserve said this month. Also affecting the U.S. economy is Europe's debt crisis, which has dampened demand for American exports. And consumers barely increased their retail spending in April and May. But there have been hopeful signs. Home sales are up from last year, home prices are rising in most cities and homebuilders are planning to break ground on more projects in the next 12 months. Still, the Federal Reserve has cut its forecast for the year. That's half a percentage point lower than the range it estimated in April. The Fed also says unemployment won't fall much further this year than it has.