First-time jobless benefit claims rise

Initial unemployment benefits claims for last week were 372,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week, the U.S. Labor Department said Thursday. The four-week average was 368,000, up 3,750 from the previous week's revised average of 364,250. The advance number of unadjusted actual first-time jobless benefits claims under state programs totaled 310,121 for the week that ended Saturday, a decrease of 7,320 from the previous week, the Labor Department said. There were 344,870 initial claims in the comparable week in 2011, the department's Employment and Training Administration said in a release.