Initial jobless claims just rose more than expected

Initial jobless claims just rose more than expected.

Claims, which count people applying for unemployment insurance for the first time, came in at 268,000, above economists' forecasts of 253,000.

Last week, claims rose slightly more than expected to 251,000.

Claims have now been below 300,000 for 91 consecutive weeks.

Initial jobless claims are used as a real-time proxy for the pace of layoffs and the overall health of the labor market, since people usually file for benefits soon after they lose their jobs.

The 4-week moving average came in at 251,500, an uptick of 500 from the previous week's unrevised average of 251,000.