Initial Jobless Claims 294K vs 290K Expected

UPDATE - More from the Dept. of Labor:

In the week ending January 3, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 294,000, a decrease of 4,000 from the previous week's unrevised level of 298,000. The 4-week moving average was 290,500, a decrease of 250 from the previous week's unrevised average of 290,750.

There were no special factors impacting this week's initial claims.