The Labor Department says the number of people applying for jobless aid rose 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 276,000. The less-volatile four-week average rose 3,500 to 263,250.
The Labor Department releases February data Friday and a FactSet survey of economists forecasts that employers added a solid 195,000 jobs last month, up from the 151,000 added in January.
Fewer Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week in a sign of a stable job market despite the slowing global economy hitting stocks and commodities.
New Jersey's unemployment rate inched up in October to 6.6 percent, and while preliminary estimates put job losses for the month at 4,500, the overall trend in the job market is a positive one.