The data from the Labor Department announced on Thursday the number of applications
for unemployment increased more than expected last week.
According to the report, the initial claims for unemployment benefits rose
by 5,000 to 245,000 for the week ended April 15.
Economists had predicted 240,000 new claims last week.
Claims for
the prior week were revised upwardly to 240,000 from the initial estimate of 239,000.
Meanwhile, the four-week moving average of jobless claims slipped to 239,750
from an upwardly revised 240,250 (from 240,000) in the previous week.
As for continuing claims, they fell to 1,865,000
from a downwardly revised 1,804,000 (from 1,810,000) in the previous week. That
was the highest reading since the week ending November 27, 2021 (1,964,000).