WASHINGTON AP – New claims for unemployment benefits dropped sharply last week, a sign that layoffs could be slowing. At the same time, hundreds of thousands of Americans are losing jobless aid because Congress has yet to pass an extension of benefits.

First-time requests for jobless aid dropped by 21,000 to a seasonally adjusted 454,000, the Labor Department said Thursday. The decline takes claims to their lowest level since early May, erasing the increases of the last two months.