The Department of Labour said the number of initial claims for jobless benefits in the week ending May 2 dipped to 601,000, a decrease of 34,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 635,000.

But the total number of unemployed drawing jobless benefits hit a record high at 6.35 million, an increase of 56,000 from the preceding week's revised level of 6.29 million, the department said.

The data came two days after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said that the US economy, which plunged into recession in December 2007, could rebound later this year but with a warning more 'sizable' job losses.

The United States entered into recession in December 2007 following a home mortgage meltdown that triggered a credit crunch and financial turmoil across the globe.

US economic growth contracted a massive 6.1 per cent in the first quarter of 2009 after a 6.3 per cent slide in the previous quarter but emerging government and private data clearly showed that the recession is easing.

The unemployment rate in March rose to a 25-year high of 8.5 per cent and analysts expect it to climb further.

Mr Bernanke had said that businesses were likely to be cautious about hiring, also implying that the unemployment rate could remain high for a time, even after economic growth resumes.

The weekly initial claims data, a snapshot on the labour market, has shown new claims above the 600,000 level for nearly three months. -- AFP