The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits last week ticked up modestly after falling to the lowest level in seven months the week before.

       U.S. applications for jobless claims rose by 3,000 to 220,000 for the week ending Sept. 9, the Labor Department reported Thursday.

       Jobless claim applications are seen as representative of the number of layoffs in a given week.

       The four-week moving average of claims, a less volatile measure, fell by 5,000 to 224,500.

       Overall, 1.69 million people were collecting unemployment benefits the week that ended Sept. 2, about 4,000 more than the previous week.