Initial Jobless Claims Rise for Week

Initial jobless claims increased by 38,000 last week, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Applications for jobless benefits for the week ended Saturday rose to 368,000, after dropping to the lowest level in five years the prior week, Labor said.

The initial claims figure was higher than economists’ forecast of 350,000, Bloomberg reported.

Continuing jobless claims for the previous week ended Jan. 19 rose by 22,000 to 3.2 million.