DOL: Unemployment Down By 1.9 Percent

The advance figure for seasonally adjusted unemployment claims for the week ending February 17 were down by 27,000, according to a federal report released Thursday.

Data from the Department of Labor found that the total claims filed stood at 332,000, a decrease of 1.9 percent from the previous week.

The four-week moving average was 328,000, an increase of 1,250 from the previous week's revised average of 326,750.

The advance unadjusted insured unemployment rate was 2.3 percent during the week ending Feb. 10, unchanged from the prior week. A year earlier, the rate was 2.3 percent and the volume was 3,017,838.

States experiencing layoffs related to manufacturing included South Carolina, Wisconsin and Ohio.