US jobless claims steady in latest week

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits was unchanged last week and the underlying trend remained consistent with a tightening labor market.

U.S. workers filed 245,000 initial claims for state unemployment benefits during the week that ended Dec. 23, according to seasonally adjusted figures published by the Labor Department on Thursday. Data for the prior week was unrevised.

(Reporting by Jason LangeEditing by Chizu Nomiyama)