JOBLESS CLAIMS UP, MAYBE NOT FOR LONG

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

DATE: FRIDAY, February 26, 1993                   TAG: 9302260146
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Short
JOBLESS CLAIMS UP, MAYBE NOT FOR LONG
The number of Americans filing initial claims for jobless benefits rose slightly in mid-February, the first advance in a month, the government said Thursday.
Despite the one-week increase, economist Robert G. Dederick of the Northern Trust Co. in Chicago said, "claims are running at rates consistent with continuing, moderate gains in employment."
"I think there will be slow but steady improvement in the job market," agreed Norman Robertson, a private economist in Pittsburgh. "I think we could see 100,000 or 125,000 jobs created a month."
The Labor Department said new applications for unemployment insurance totaled 325,000 during the week ended Feb. 13, up from 321,000 a week earlier. It was the first increase since claims rose 1,000 to 361,000 during the week ended Jan. 16.
The four-week moving average of new claims fell to 334,500 from 343,500, the third straight decline and the lowest level since the 327,250 average for the period ended Sept. 30, 1989. Many analysts prefer to monitor the four-week average because it smooths out the volatility of the weekly claims.
The largest declines were in California, 6,789; Illinois, 4,974; Texas, 2,687; Pennsylvania, 2,461; and New York, 2,138.
The largest increases were in Michigan, 3,149; Missouri, 543; New Mexico, 325; and Kentucky, 260.

by Archana Subramaniam by CNB