The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits rose less than expected last week and the underlying trend remained consistent with a tightening labor market that is starting to spur faster wage growth, CNBC reports. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 10,000 to a seasonally adjusted 247,000 for the week ended Jan. 7, the US Labor Department said on Thursday. The four-week moving average of claims, considered a better measure of labor market trends as it irons out week-to-week volatility, fell 1,750 to 256,500 last week.