Japan rallies to beat Romania and reach quarterfinals of Billie Jean King Cup Finals

MALAGA, Spain (AP) — Japan reached the quarterfinals of the Billie Jean King Cup Finals for the first time since 2013 after rallying to defeat Romania 2-1 on Thursday.

Japan advanced when Eri Hozumi and Shuko Aoyama defeated Monica Niculescu and Elena Ruse 6-1, 7-5 in the deciding doubles match.

Ana Bogdan had put Romania ahead with a 6-2, 6-4 win over Nao Hibino in the first singles match of the day but Ena Shibahara pulled Japan level with a 6-4, 7-6 (2) victory over Jaqueline Cristian.

Japan will face Italy in the quarterfinals. The United States faced Slovakia later Thursday for a place in the last eight.

The the first match between Japan and Romania had been moved back two hours because of a severe weather alert that was in effect in the Malaga region until early in the day. The weather alert had already forced the opening meeting between Spain and Poland to be pushed back from Wednesday to Friday, when Germany is also facing Britain.

The Billie Jean King Cup Finals is taking place about two weeks after a powerful storm caused flash floods that killed more than 200 people in the Valencia region, east of Malaga.

The International Tennis Federation announced a donation to the Spanish Red Cross to support relief and recovery efforts in the region, and Spanish player Paula Badosa said she will donate half of her prize money to help the victims.

Both the Billie Jean King Cup Finals and the Davis Cup Finals are taking place in the southern Spanish city, with the men’s competition beginning next week, also at the Palacio de Deportes.

It is the first time that the women’s team tournament is taking place at the same venue as the Davis Cup and with overlapping dates. And for the second year in a row, it will offer equivalent prize money to the men’s competition.

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A general view of the Martin Carpena sportshall during the Billie Jean King Cup finals in Malaga, southern Spain, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, after today's matches were canceled due to heavy rain and postponed until tomorrow. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

A general view of the Martin Carpena sportshall during the Billie Jean King Cup finals in Malaga, southern Spain, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, after today's matches were canceled due to heavy rain and postponed until tomorrow. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Japan's Ena Shibahara returns the ball against Romania's Jaqueline Cristian during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Romania's Jaqueline Cristian returns the ball against Japan's Ena Shibahara during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Japan's Ena Shibahara returns the ball against Romania's Jaqueline Cristian during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Romania's Jaqueline Cristian serves against Japan's Ena Shibahara during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Romania's Jaqueline Cristian returns the ball against Japan's Ena Shibahara during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Japan's Ena Shibahara returns the ball against Romania's Jaqueline Cristian during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Japan's Ena Shibahara smiles during her match against Romania's Jaqueline Cristian during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

Japan's Ena Shibahara returns the ball against Romania's Jaqueline Cristian during the Billie Jean King Cup Finals, at the Martin Carpena Sports Hall, in Malaga, southern Spain, on Thursday, Nov. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Manu Fernandez)

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell to the lowest level in six months last week as layoffs remain at relatively healthy levels.

The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claim applications fell by 4,000 to 217,000 for the week of Nov. 9. That’s less than the 225,000 analysts forecast.

The four-week average of weekly claims, which evens out some of the weekly ups and downs, fell by 6,250 to 221,000.

Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered representative of U.S. layoffs in a given week.

In response to weakening employment data and receding consumer prices, the Federal Reserve slashed its benchmark interest rate in September by a half a percentage point and by another quarter-point last week.

The central bank is shifting its focus from taming inflation toward supporting the job market in an attempt to pull off a rare “soft landing,” whereby it brings down inflation without igniting a recession.

The half-point rate cut in September was the Fed’s first rate cut in four years after a series of increases starting in 2022 that pushed the federal funds rate to a two-decade high of 5.3%.

Despite a slight uptick in October, inflation has retreated steadily the past two years, approaching the Fed’s 2% target and leading Chair Jerome Powell to declare recently that it was largely under control.

Two weeks ago, the government reported that an inflation gauge closely watched by the Fed fell to its lowest level in three-and-a-half years.

During the first four months of 2024, applications for jobless benefits averaged just 213,000 a week before rising in May. They hit 250,000 in late July, supporting the notion that high interest rates were finally cooling a red-hot U.S. job market.

In October, the U.S. economy produced a meager 12,000 jobs, though economists pointed to recent strikes and hurricanes that left many workers temporarily off payrolls.

The Labor Department reported In August that the U.S. economy added 818,000 fewer jobs from April 2023 through March this year than were originally reported. The revised total was also considered evidence that the job market has been slowing steadily, compelling the Fed to start cutting interest rates.

Continuing claims, the total number of Americans collecting jobless benefits, fell to 1.87 million for the week of Nov. 2, in line with analysts' expectations.

A hiring sign is displayed at a retail store in Buffalo Grove, Ill., Wednesday, Nov. 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)