The four-week average of claims, which softens some of the weekly volatility, rose by 4,750 to 215,000.
Weekly unemployment claims are considered a proxy for the number of U.S. layoffs in a given week and a sign of where the job market is headed. They have remained at historically low levels since the pandemic purge of millions of jobs in the spring of 2020.
Last month, U.S. employers added just 175,000 jobs, the fewest in six months and another sign that the labor market may be loosening. The unemployment rate inched back up to 3.9% from 3.8% and has now remained below 4% for 27 straight months, the longest such streak since the 1960s.
The government also recently reported 8.5 million job openings in March, the lowest number of vacancies in three years.
Moderation in the pace of hiring, along with a slowdown in wage growth could give the Fed the data its been seeking in order to finally issue a cut to interest rates.
The Federal Reserve raised its benchmark borrowing rate 11 times beginning in March of 2022 in a bid to stifle the four-decade high inflation that took hold after the economy rebounded from the COVID-19 recession of 2020. The Fed’s intention was to loosen the labor market and cool wage growth, which can fuel inflation.
Many economists thought there was a chance the rapid rate hikes could cause a recession, but jobs have remained plentiful and the economy forged on thanks to strong spending by U.S. consumers.
Though layoffs remain at low levels, companies have been announcing more job cuts recently, mostly across technology and media. Google parent company Alphabet, Apple and eBay have all recently announced layoffs.
Outside of tech and media, Peloton, Stellantis, Nike and Tesla have recently announced job cuts.
In total, 1.79 million Americans were collecting jobless benefits during the week that ended April 27. That’s up 17,000 from the previous week.