The US four-week moving average of initial claims for unemployment insurance was 284,750 last week, up 2,000 from the previous week’s downwardly revised average, according to seasonally adjusted numbers released today by the US Department of Labor.

The four-week moving average decreases the volatility of the weekly numbers. Total initial claims for unemployment insurance for the week ended Jan. 30 were 285,000, up 8,000 from the previous week’s downwardly revised level.

No special factors affected this week’s initial claims.

Bloomberg reported the four-week average exceeded 280,000 for a third consecutive week, indicating the pace of firings has sped up a bit from historically low levels. Initial claims exceeded the median forecast in its survey of 47 economists, which called for 278,000 in initial claims, but may represent the week-to-week volatility common to claims data around holidays.