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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, February 26, 1993                   TAG: 9302260109
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

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VA. CLAIMS AT 4-YEAR LOW

The number of Virginians filing initial claims for unemployment benefits in January were at the lowest level in four years, the Virginia Employment Commission said Thursday.

The agency called the report evidence that the economy "struggles to recover from the recession." Fewer furloughs were reported in the state than in recent years.

The number of initial claims was down 30.7 percent from January 1992 and 0.6 percent from December, the VEC said. Several scattered one-week closings in textiles and auto manufacturing were the source of most claims, according to William F. Mezger, the VEC's research economist.

January weather, comparatively mild for the fifth year in a row, helped, the VEC said.

Filings of initial claims often decrease in January after December, when claims for most holiday furloughs are filed. The VEC said the number of people affected by holiday furloughs was the fewest in five years.

- Staff report

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