Signs of recovery in the U.S. job market have continued with the Commerce Department reporting Thursday initial applications for unemployment aid falling last week to the lowest level in four years.

The Labor Department said the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for jobless benefits was 351,000 in the week ending Feb. 25, a decrease of 2,000 from the previous week's revised figure.

The fresh figure matched the four-year low reached three weeks ago, which was the fewest since March 2008.

As a rule of thumb, fewer than 425,000 people applying for aid is consistent with modest job growth, and below 375,000 indicates a sustained drop in the unemployment rate.

Meanwhile, the four-week moving average, which helps smooth out week-to-week volatility, edged down by 5,500 to 354,000.

The advance figure for seasonally adjusted insured unemployment during the week ending Feb. 18 was 3.402 million, a decrease of 2,000 from one week earlier.

The weekly figures of jobless benefits applications reflect the level of layoffs and indicate the real-time condition of the American job market.

The Commerce Department recently revised up the economic growth rate to an annual rate of 3 percent in the fourth quarter. An improving economy also means accelerated job growth.

But U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Wednesday the nation's high unemployment rate was expected to edge down "only slowly" in 2012.