In the week ending February 21, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance was 313,000, an increase of 31,000 from the previous week’s revised level, the Labor Department reported. The four-week moving average was 294,500, an increase of 11,500 from the previous week’s revised average.

On a seasonally adjusted basis, the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) declined 0.7% in January after falling 0.3% in December, the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced. The index for all items less food and energy rose 0.2% in January after increasing 0.1% in December.

Real average hourly earnings rose by 1.2% in January, seasonally adjusted. Average hourly earnings increased by 0.5% and the CPI-U decreased by 0.7%. Real average weekly earnings increased by 1.2% over the month.

New orders for manufactured durable goods in January increased $6.5 billion or 2.8% to $236.1 billion, the U.S. Census Bureau announced. This increase, up following two consecutive monthly decreases, followed a 3.7% December decrease. Excluding transportation, new orders increased 0.3%. Excluding defense, new orders increased 3.0%. Transportation equipment, also up following two consecutive monthly decreases, led the increase, $6.0 billion or 9.1% to $72.1 billion.

The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.80%, up from 3.76% one week ago, according to Freddie Mac. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.07%, up from 3.05%.

Major U.S. stock indices ended mixed Thursday as oil prices fell again. The Dow closed slipped 10.15 points (0.06%) to 18,214.42, the NASDAQ gained 20.75 points (0.42%) to finish at 4,987.89, and the S&P 500 was down 3.12 points (0.15%) at 2,110.74. The Russell 2000 closed 4.01 points (0.32%) higher at 1,239.11, and the Wilshire 5000 closed 36.33 points (0.16%) lower at 22,278.23.

On the NYSE, 3.2 billion shares traded, with a slight lead for decliners. On the NASDAQ, 2.7 billion shares changed hands, with 1.2 advancing issues for every declining issue.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note decreased 17/32, bringing its yield up to 2.028%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond fell 1 5/32, increasing its yield to 2.628%.

ON THIS DATE: In 1827, a group of masked and costumed students danced through the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, marking the beginning of the city’s famous Mardi Gras celebrations. In 1922, in Washington, D.C., the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, providing for female suffrage, was unanimously declared constitutional by the eight members of the U.S. Supreme Court. In 1951, the 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution was ratified, limiting U.S. Presidents to two terms. In 1980, the first and final Grammy for Best Disco Recording was awarded to Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive.” In 1997, Don Cornelius received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

And now it’s time for FRIDAY FILES!

In Milville, New Jersey, a 33-year-old school bus aide complained that someone stole $400 from her. Authorities reviewed surveillance footage from the bus on which she worked, and saw her rummaging through students’ backpacks. She was seen stealing money and food from the three- to five-year-olds she was supervising. The aide has been fired.

In Atlanta, Georgia, researchers at Georgia Tech released results of a study that reveals the perfect eyelash length. According to the researchers, the ideal eyelash length is one-third the width of the eye—, anything shorter or longer than this increases the odds of getting dust and debris in the eye. In addition to analyzing animal hides from the American Museum of Natural History in New York, the researchers constructed a model eye and put it inside a wind tunnel to better understand the reasoning for the dimensions. “Eyelashes form a barrier to control airflow and the rate of evaporation on the surface of the cornea,” said lead study author Guillermo Amador, a researcher in mechanical engineering at Georgia Tech. “When eyelashes are shorter than the one-third ratio, they have only a slight effect on the flow. Their effect is more pronounced as they lengthen up until one-third. After that, they start funneling air and dust particles into the eye.”

In Augusta, Georgia, a family found out a man buried during a closed-casket funeral in December was not actually their loved one. The Augusta Chronicle quoted Burke County Coroner Susan Salemi as saying the lab didn’t return the man’s body after an autopsy. The body of another man was mistakenly returned and buried by relatives who thought they were laying their loved one to rest. Georgia Bureau of Investigation officials said it will retrieve the wrong body from the grave and pay for a new burial.

In Ottowa, Ontario, Canada, last week, legislator Pat Martin hurriedly ran out of the House of Commons during a vote. As members of Parliament began to rise one by one to vote, he bolted from the room, but was able to return in time to cast his vote. He later blamed his departure on an unwise purchase at a local store. “They had men’s underwear on for half price and I bought a bunch that was clearly too small for me. I find it difficult to sit for any length of time,” he told the chamber to guffaws and applause from fellow legislators, according to Reuters.

In Bogata, Columbia, a 36-year-old woman previously known as Ladyzunga Cyborg (not her original name) has won a court battle to have her name changed. According to UPI, the woman says her government ID card now officially lists her first name as ABCDEFG HIJKLMN and her last name as OPQRST UVWXYZ. She said it took her a year of arguing with the Colombian National Registry to officially get her new name, which she chose for being unusual and hard to pronounce.

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