Fewer unemployment filings

WASHINGTON (AP) — The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell 2,000 last week

to a seasonally adjusted 326,000, a sign that layoffs are weighing less on employment and economic growth.The Labor Department says the less volatile four-week average dropped 13,500 to 335,000.

More than 4.7 million Americans collected benefits at the end of last year, a figure that has declined by almost 1.2 million over the past 12 months. But that number is poised drop by another 1.35 million in upcoming reports. That's because a special federal program expired last month.The program provided aid to long-term unemployed Americans who exhausted their state benefits. Congress failed this week to renew the program introduced in 2008.

In other economic news:

The Labor Department says the consumer price index rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3 percent in December, after a flat reading the previous month. Prices increased 1.5 percent in 2013, down from 1.7 percent in 2012. That's also below the Federal Reserve's target of 2 percent. Gas prices jumped 3.1 percent in December, the biggest gain since June. Food prices ticked up 0.1 percent.

Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, core prices ticked up just 0.1 percent in December. Clothing costs jumped after three months of declines and rents also rose. Core prices rose 1.7 percent in 2013, down from a 1.9 percent increase in 2012.