US unemployment claims rise

New claims for US unemployment benefits rose last week, the government reported Thursday, as figures for the previous week were also revised up. Initial jobless claims, a sign of the pace of layoffs, rose to 399,000 in the week ending January 7, up 24,000 from the prior week's total of 375,000, the Labor Department said. The figure was higher than economists had expected. Large increases were seen in Michigan and Wisconsin, while a hefty decrease in claims was evident in California. Around 4.1 million Americans get jobless benefits every week, down from around 4.8 million a year ago.