Initial Jobless Claims Rise for Week

Initial jobless claims rose by 15,000 last week to 444,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.

Economists had forecast a decline to 420,000, Bloomberg reported.

The four-week moving average, a less volatile measure, fell to 438,000 from 441,250.

The number of continuing claims rose to 3.435 million for the previous week ended Aug. 23, the highest level in almost five years, Labor said.