NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Jobless claims fell in the United States last week, the government said Thursday, as the labor market continued its slow recovery from a long slump.

The Labor Department said 386,000 people filed for benefits in the week ended Oct. 25, compared with a revised reading of 391,000 in the prior week.

Economists, on average, expected 385,000 new claims, according to Briefing.com.

New claims have fluctuated in a narrow range near the 400,000 mark since mid-July. Most economists consider new claims below the 400,000 threshold as a sign of a recovery. This is the fourth consecutive week the figure has been below that level.

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Continued claims, the number of people out of work for a week or more, rose slightly to 3.56 million for the week ended Oct. 18, the latest data available, from a revised 3.50 million the prior week.

The four-week moving average of new claims, which irons out the volatility of the weekly data, was fell to 388,750 in the week ended Oct. 25 from a revised 393,500 in the prior week.