Jobless Claims Rise Slightly in Latest Week

The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits edged higher last week by 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 313,000, the Labor Department said. Economists had expected the increase and said it did not signal any deterioration in the strength of demand for labor, which in April pushed the nation’s unemployment rate to a 28-year low of 4.3%. Since the end of January, claims have fluctuated in a relatively narrow range between around 300,000 and 320,000, with the exception of Easter week, when claims sank to a nine-month low of 288,000. A four-week moving average of benefit claims, which evens out weekly fluctuations, moved down to 311,500 last week from 313,000 the week before.