The US four-week moving average of initial claims for unemployment insurance edged down to 221,500 last week, down 750 from the previous week’s unrevised average, the US Department of Labor reported. The previous week’s average was revised down by 250.

The four-week moving average decreases the volatility of the weekly numbers. Total initial claims for unemployment insurance for the week ended March 10 fell to 226,000, down 4,000 from the previous week’s level, which was revised down by 1,000.

Claims-taking procedures in Puerto Rico and in the Virgin Islands have still not returned to normal.

MarketWatch reported the rate of layoffs in the US as measured by initial jobless claims fell slightly in early March and clung near a 50-year low — a boon for workers and a headache for employers looking to hire. Economists surveyed by MarketWatch had forecast claims to total 228,000.