U.S. jobless claims rose in latest week

    WASHINGTON, Feb 18 (Reuters) -  U.S. Labor Department report
of initial state jobless benefit claims, seasonally adjusted.
     Week Ended  Initial Claims  4-Week Avg.  Continued Claims
        2/13/99     288,000      292,000      Unavailable
        2/06/99     284,000-R    298,750-R    2,262,000
        1/30/99     295,000-R    317,250-R    2,274,000-R
        1/23/99     301,000-R    332,000-R    2,214,000-R
    REVISIONS:

    Initial Claims: Feb 6 from 281,000, Jan 30 from 294,000 and
Jan 23 from 300,000
    Four-Week Average: Feb 6 from 297,750, Jan 30 from 317,500
and Jan 23 from 333,000
    Continued Claims: Jan 30 from 2,264,000 and Jan 23 from
2,212,000
    FORECAST:
    Reuters survey of economists forecast:
    299,000 initial claims in the Feb. 13 week

    STATES WITH INCREASES IN CLAIMS OF MORE THAN 1,000:
    One state reported an increase in claims of more than 1,000
in the week ended Feb 6, the latest period for which the data
are available. It was:
    STATE              CHANGE IN CLAIMS
    California            +11,537
    STATES WITH DECREASES IN CLAIMS OF MORE THAN 1,000:
    Seven states reported a decrease in claims of more than
1,000 in the week ended Feb 6. They were:

    STATE              CHANGE IN CLAIMS
    Georgia                -2,874
    Pennsylvania           -1,839
    Tennessee              -1,782
    Rhode Island           -1,107
    Maine                  -1,025
    Connecticut            -1,020
    North Carolina         -1,017