The US Labor Department released a report showing that initial claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, as the number of people filing claims on an ongoing basis rose to a fresh record high.  Economists had expected 635,000 new claims, according to a consensus survey by Briefing.com, but according to the report, in the week ended May 2, 601,000 people filed initial jobless claims, down 34,000 from an upwardly revised 635,000 in the previous week.  This report comes on the heels of the two private sector reports we told you about yesterday, and seems to strengthen the notion that the rate of decline is slowing, even if the numbers of people on unemployment is rising.  The unemployment rate is forecast to rise to 8.9% from 8.5%.  Hey, let's be optimistic and call it good news.