Initial Unemployment Applications Edge Higher

Washington, DC, March 8, 2012 -- Initial applications for unemployment benefits rose modestly last week but they remained in a range usually associated with better labor-market conditions.

Initial claims rose by 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 362,000 in the week ended March 3, the Labor Department said.

Claims from two weeks ago were revised up to 354,000 from 351,000 previously.

The four-week average of claims, meanwhile, was virtually unchanged at 355,000, which is near a four-year low.