US Jobless Claims Tick Down to 209,000 During Holiday Week (2)

Applications for US unemployment benefits were little changed last week, adding to evidence of some stabilization in the labor market.

Initial claims edged down by 1,000 to 209,000 in the week ended Jan. 24, after an upward revision to the previous week, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 205,000 applications.

The period included Martin Luther King Jr. Day and was marked by severe winter storms across many parts of the country. The data tend to fluctuate around holidays and inclement weather, when people are temporarily unable to work. ...