Unemployment claims rise to 242,000, the highest in 3 months

Applications for U.S. jobless benefits rose to a three-month high last week but remained within the same healthy range of the past three years.

The number of Americans filing for jobless benefits for the first time rose by 22,000 to 242,000 for the week ending Feb. 22, the Labor Department said Thursday. Analysts had projected that 220,000 new applications would be filed.

Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs.