NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Jobless claims fell in the United States last week, the government said Thursday, remaining below the 400,000 level that many economists believe is a benchmark for labor-market weakness.

The Labor Department said 384,000 people filed for benefits in the week ended Oct. 11, compared with a revised reading of 388,000 in the prior week.

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

The four-week moving average of new claims, which irons out the volatility of the weekly data, fell in the latest week to 390,750 from a revised 395,000 the prior week. The number is the lowest since Feb. 8, 2003.

Continued claims, the number of people out of work for a week or more, rose to 3.67 million for the week ended Oct. 4, the latest data available, from a revised 3.61 million the prior week.