WASHINGTON, Dec 4 — The number of Americans filing new applications for unemployment benefits fell to a more than three-year low last week, allaying fears of a sharp deterioration in labor market conditions after independent surveys showed job losses in November.

Difficulties adjusting the weekly jobless claims data around the Thanksgiving holiday could have accounted for some of the unexpected decline reported by the Labor Department on Thursday. Still, economists said the weekly unemployment claims report, the most timely data on the economy’s health, was consistent with a labor market that remained in a holding pattern.

Revelio Labs, which develops monthly employment estimates from online employment profiles and other information, said the economy lost 9,000 jobs in November. That was

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