There were 355,000 first-time claims for unemployment insurance last week, down by 8,000 from the week before, the Employment and Training Administration says.
But a measure designed to show the trend edged up: "The 4-week moving average was 370,500, an increase of 3,250 from the previous week's unrevised average of 367,250."
And, The Associated Press says, the week-over-week decline might have been due in part to Superstorm Sandy: Some people who might have applied for benefits couldn't because of the damage the storm inflicted on parts of New Jersey, New York and surrounding states.
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