The US four-week moving average of initial claims for unemployment insurance fell to 223,000 last week, down 1,750 from the previous week’s average, the US Department of Labor reported. The previous week’s average was revised upward by 250.

The four-week moving average decreases the volatility of the weekly numbers. Total initial claims for unemployment insurance for the week ended July 7 fell to 214,000, down 18,000 from the previous week’s level, which was revised up by 1,000.

The number of claims last week was the third-lowest of the current nine-year-old economic expansion that began in mid-2009, MarketWatch reported. However, the drop in claims last week was likely exaggerated by July 4 occurring in midweek as fewer people may have filed applications around the holiday.