The U.S. Labor Department reports on the number of people who applied for unemployment benefits last week. The report will be released Thursday at 8:30 a.m. Eastern. LITTLE CHANGE: Economists forecast that weekly applications slipped 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 293,000, according to a survey by data provider FactSet. Applications have come in under 300,000 for 12 of the past 13 weeks, a historically low level indicating that employers are confident the economy will continue to grow. The four-week average of applications, a less volatile measure, has dropped 7.3 percent in the past 12 months. Applications are a ... (full story)