The economy took another step in the right direction on Thursday, with the U.S. Labor Department reporting that the number of people applying for unemployment benefits fell by 5,000, to a seasonally adjusted 457,000 in the week ending March 13, according to Market Watch. The news coming out of Washington marks the third consecutive week that unemployment claims have dropped.

Additionally, the report said that labor market and consumer pricing indicate that the U.S. economy is experiencing moderate growth, and that inflation has been successfully contained. In fact, core inflation has only risen 1.3 percent – the lowest figure since 2004, Reuters reports.

Meanwhile, after months of anticipation, President Obama signed into law a $17.6 billion dollar jobs bill earlier this week, giving hope to those who have yet to find employment after last year’s recession.

“A consensus is forming that, partly because of the necessary – and often unpopular – measures we took over the past year, our economy is growing again and we may soon be adding jobs instead of losing them,” said Obama.

“The jobs bill I’m signing today is intended to help accelerate this process,” he added.