JOBLESS RATE UP, STILL NEAR 43-YEAR LOW

The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits rose to the highest level in five weeks but still remained close to the recent 43-year lows.

Weekly applications for jobless benefits rose by 13,000 last week to 260,000, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. Even with last week’s gain, claims, which are a proxy for layoffs, remain at levels indicating that workers are enjoying job security despite sluggish economic growth.

The increase in benefit applications was bigger than economists had been forecasting, but some suggested that disruptions in filing applications earlier caused by Hurricane Matthew might have been a factor.

30-year mortgage rises to 3.52%. Mortgage giant

Freddie Mac said Thursday the average for a 30year fixed-rate mortgage increased to 3.52 percent from 3.47 percent last week. The benchmark 30year rate is down from 3.79 percent a year ago and close to its all-time low of 3.31 percent in November 2012. The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, popular with homeowners who are refinancing, rose to 2.79 percent from 2.76 percent

Verizon still digesting Yahoo hack. Verizon said

its profit fell in its most recent quarter as it added fewer subscribers for its traditional cellphone business. It also said it’s still evaluating how the hack at Yahoo affects its $4.8 billion deal for the company.

Verizon wants Yahoo because it is seeking to build an online advertising arm that could rival Google and Facebook. But a massive hack of users’ e-mail accounts has raised questions about whether Verizon will ask for a discount or other changes.

Union Pacific 3Q profit falls 13 percent.

Union Pacific’s profit fell 13 percent in the third quarter because of the railroad’s efforts to cut costs and improve productivity couldn’t offset a 6 percent decline in total freight. The railroad reported earning $1.13 billion, or $1.36 per share, down from $1.3 billion, or $1.50 per share, last year. Revenue declined 7 percent to $5.17 billion.

Nissan-Renault CEO Ghosn to chair troubled Mitsubishi Motors.

Carlos Ghosn, who heads Japan’s Nissan Motor and Renault of France, will become chairman of Mitsubishi Motors, working to restore faith in the troubled automaker after a devastating mileage scandal. Ghosn, who presided over Nissan’s revival from the brink of bankruptcy in the early 2000s after it formed an alliance with Renault, said he expected it would be difficult to restore Mitsubishi’s shattered reputation. But the Brazilianborn Frenchman said he believed it was possible.

Home sales rebound in September. More Americans

bought homes in September, many for the first time, despite a persistent shortage of properties for sale. The National Association of Realtors said on Thursday that sales of existing homes rose 3.2 percent from August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.47 million, the strongest pace since June. Sales rose across the country: 5.7 percent in the Northeast, 5 percent in the West, 3.9 percent in the Midwest and 0.9 percent in the South.