U.S. Weekly Jobless Claims Rise Less Than Expected

(RTTNews) - A report released by the Labor Department on Thursday showed a modest increase in first-time claims for U.S. unemployment benefits in the week ended February 21st.

The Labor Department said initial jobless claims rose to 212,000, an increase of 4,000 from the previous week's revised level of 208,000.

Economists had expected jobless claims to climb to 215,000 from the 206,000 originally reported for the previous week.

The report said the less volatile four-week moving average also crept up to 220,250, an increase of 750 from the previous week's revised average of 219,500.