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The numbers: Initial jobless claims rose by 12,000 to 218,000 in the week ended Dec. 23, the Labor Department said Thursday.
Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had estimated new claims would rose to 215,000.
Last week claims rose a revised 3,000 to 206,000. That compared with the initial estimate of a rise of 2,000 to 205,000.
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