Initial Jobless Claims Edge Lower

Washington, DC, Oct. 29, 2009--Initial jobless claims were little changed last week, the government said Thursday, with a total figure that missed analysts' expectations.

There were 530,000 claims filed in the week ended Oct. 24, down 1,000 from an unrevised 531,000 the previous week, the Labor Department.

A consensus estimate of economists expected 525,000 new claims.

The 4-week moving average of initial claims was 526,250, down 6,000 from the previous week's revised average of 532,250.

The government said 5,797,000 people filed continuing claims in the week ended Oct. 17, the most recent data available. The number was down 148,000 from the preceding week's revised 5,945,000 claims, and marked the second time since late March that continuing claims fell below 6 million.