Fewer manufacturing layoffs in the Midwest helped reduce the number of initial claims for unemployment insurance last week. First-time claims totaled 313,000, a decrease of 1,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 314,000, the U.S. Labor Department reported on August 24.
The department's four-week moving average of initial claims also declined last week, falling by 3,500 claims to 315,250.
