Applications for first-time unemployment benefits crept up last week as the nation's job market continued its roller coaster ride, the government reported Thursday.
The Labor Department said the number of Americans filing initial jobless claims for the week ended Dec. 18 was a seasonally adjusted 332,000, up 4,000 from a revised 328,000 the previous week. The department initially reported the previous week's figure at 330,000.Economists had expected little change.
The latest figures follow a continuing pattern in recent weeks of slight fluctuations in a volatile job market.
The four week moving average, preferred by economists as a measure of hiring trends over the more volatile weekly number, declined by 1,750 from the previous week's revised average of 331,000, the department said. That was the lowest level in more than two months.
That figure has fluctuated in a relatively narrow range between 330,000 and 350,000 since mid-August.
Economists, citing hiring gains among smaller companies, say the job market is gradually improving.