NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - Initial U.S. jobless claims posted an unexpected rise of 10,000 last week, adding to a surge the week prior from which analysts had expected a sizeable fall, according to a government report released Thursday.

The number of Americans who filed claims seeking first-time state unemployment insurance benefits rose to 367,000 for the week ended Jan. 8 from a revised 357,000 the previous week, according to the Department of Labor.

Analysts had predicted a drop in jobless claims to 340,000 from the initially reported number of 364,000 released last week, according to Briefing.com.

Last week's revised numbers represented an unexpected surge of 37,000 claims.

The four-week moving average, which is seen as more reliable because it smoothes weekly volatility, was 344,000, an increase of 12,750 from the previous week's revised average of 331,250.