WASHINGTON (MktNews) - Initial claims for U.S. state unemployment fell by 11,000 to 352,000 in the week of Feb. 10, the Labor Department reported Thursday.
The Labor Department cited no special factors contributing to this week's decline.
The new level was lower than a consensus forecast from a Market News International survey, which had centered on a 4,000 increase to 365,000 with a range of down 11,000 to up 9,000.
But the four-week moving average for initial claims continues to trend upward after rises for three consecutive weeks ahead of the Feb. 10 data. The four-week average gained 12,000 to reach 345,000, which may be linked to rising corporate and auto sector layoffs.
Initial claims have been generally elevated since November, with the exception of the early January weeks, as a result of the auto layoffs, seasonal adjustment problems and severe weather.
The state of Michigan has shown expected volatility in the auto sector in the past two weeks, recording an unadjusted surge in unemployment of over 20,000 two weeks ago and a hiring rebound of nearly 11,000 last week.
Continuing claims rose 137,000 to 2.503 million in the Feb. 3 week. Continuing claims reporting lags initial claims by one week. The seasonally adjusted rate of insured unemployment was 2.0% in the week of Feb. 3, up slightly from the prior week's 1.9%
The Labor Department said its annual revisions for jobless claims will be included in the release scheduled for next week on Feb. 22.