First-time jobless claims down by 35,000

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WASHINGTON, July 26 (UPI) -- First-time jobless claims fell by 35,000 in the week ending Saturday, almost erasing the 36,000 increase from the previous week, the U.S. Labor Department said.

The weekly report issued Thursday said last week's total for first-time unemployment benefit claims was 388,000, not 386,00 as previously reported.

For the current week, claims fell to 353,000. The four-week rolling average, which gives a steadier indication of the direction of jobless claims, fell by 8,750 to 367,250, the department said.

The largest increases in initial claims for the week ending July 14 were in California (up by 26,244), North Carolina (up by 11,948) and Georgia (up by 8,372). The largest decreases were in New York (down by 10,794), Michigan (down by 7,453) and Kentucky (down by 4,904).

The U.S. unemployment rate is 8.2 percent. After rising 0.1 of a percentage point from April to May, it remained unchanged in June on the addition of 80,000 jobs.