New Jobless Claims Dip

New claims for uninsured benefits fell slightly last week, down by 6,000 to 388,000, the Labor Department reported today.

But the (seasonally-adjusted) four week moving average, which smooths out weekly volatility and gives a better idea of the overall trend, actually moved upwards 394,250 - an increase of 3,250 from the previous week’s revised average of 391,000.

The insured unemployment rate for the second week of March was 3%, and the official national unemployment rate was 8.9% in February.

Separately, the Census bureau reported on Monday that Americans made more money and spent more money in February 2011 than they did the month before. But inflation was the reason for much of the increased spending.

Personal income rose to $38.1 billion, or .3%, in February, nearly meeting the private-sector forecast of .4%. Keeping in-line with the increase in income, consumer spending also rose by .3%.

“The good news in today’s report is that wages and salaries – an important and large component of personal income – are strong and rising,” said U.S. Commerce Department Chief Economist Mark Doms.