(new info, grafs 1, 5)

Key measures of the U.S. job and housing markets have gotten a bit worse recently.

Thursday's report from the Labor Department shows the number of Americans signing up for unemployment compensation rose by 9,000 to a nationwide total of 429,000.

The report is the latest in a series showing continued weakness in U.S. employment.

The head of the U.S. Federal Reserve , Ben Bernanke, says the job situation is improving with “frustrating” slowness.

A separate government report on the housing market Thursday shows the sales of newly-built homes declined more than two percent in May. If sales continued at May's rate for a full year, just 319,000 new homes would change hands. That is less than half the sales rate seen in a healthy housing market.

On Friday, government experts will publish updated information on U.S. economic growth for the first three months of this year. Economists interviewed by news agencies predict the data will show a slight increase from prior reports, putting expansion at a 1.9 percent rate for the first quarter.