The number of new applications for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose by 5,000 in the latest week, the government said today.
Claims jumped to 385,000 in the latest week, confounding expectations that claims would drop by 7,000, to 350,000.
That came shortly after a report showed more Americans applied for unemployment insurance in the latest week.
The American Trucking Asso ciations, Inc., reported truck tonnage in the latest week was 4.6percentnt below the like pe riod of last year.
But the figures follow Thursday's report from the Labor Department, which reported claims for unemployment benefits spiked in the latest week to the highest level in four months.
The Association of American Railroads reported today freight traffic on United States rail roads in the latest week totaled an estimated 14.9‐billion ton miles, 2.1percentnt below the corresponding week last year.
The Association of American Railroads reported freight traf fic in the latest week totaled an estimated 15.4 billion ton‐miles, 2.1 per cent above the compa rable week last year.
Thirty-year fixed-rate mortgages fell seven basis points, or hundredths of a percentage point, to an average 6.71percentt in the latest week, from 6.78percentthehe previous week.
The four-week moving average, considered a more reliable indicator of the labor market because it smooths out weekly fluctuations, also fell to 262,500 in the latest week.
And the Labor Department's report on initial jobless claims showed a decline in newly unemployed workers seeking jobless benefits, falling in the latest week to 448,000 from 459,000.
