U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Rise Less Than Expected

(RTTNews) - First-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits rose by less than expected in the week ended September 10th, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday.

The report said initial jobless claims inched up to 260,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 259,000. Economists had expected jobless claims to rise to 265,000.

Initial jobless claims have held relatively stable over the past several weeks, showing only slight moves back and forth.

The Labor Department said jobless claims remained below 300,000 for the 80th consecutive week, reflecting the longest streak since 1970.

The report also said the less volatile four-week moving average edged down to 260,750, a decrease of 500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 261,250.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department said continuing claims, a reading on the number of people receiving ongoing unemployment assistance, crept up by 1,000 to 2.143 million in the week ended September 3rd.

The four-week moving average of continuing claims still dipped to 2,146,750, a decrease of 8,000 from the previous week's revised average of 2,154,750.