US Jobless Claims Settle Back After Severe Winter Weather (2)

Applications for US unemployment benefits edged down last week following a surge during severe winter weather in the previous period.

Initial claims decreased by 5,000 to 227,000 in the week ended Feb. 7, according to Labor Department data released Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 223,000.

Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving benefits, climbed to 1.86 million in the prior week.

Weekly claims tend to fluctuate around holidays and inclement weather, when people are temporarily unable to work. The lower level of claims suggest businesses ...