Jobless claims rise 16,000 in latest week

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for jobless aid rose by 16,000 last week, the government said on Thursday.

Initial claims for state unemployment insurance benefits jumped to 317,000 in the week ended September 29 from an upwardly revised 301,000 the prior week, the Labor Department said.

The new claims figures exceeded Wall Street economists' forecasts for rise to 310,000 in new jobless claims from the preliminary reading of 298,000 in the week ended September 22.

The four-week moving average of new claims, watched for trends in the labor market, edged up to 312,750 in the week ended September 29 from 312,250 the week before.

The number of people who remained on state benefit rolls after drawing an initial week of aid fell by 10,000 to 2.54 million in the week ended September 22, the latest period for which figures were available. Economists had forecast 2.55 million.