In the week ending March 28, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims was 202,000, a decrease of 9,000 from the previous week's revised level. The previous week's level was revised up by 1,000 from 210,000 to 211,000. The 4-week moving average was 207,750, a decrease of 3,000 from the previous week's revised average. The previous week's average was revised up by 250 from 210,500 to 210,750. The advance seasonally adjusted insured unemployment rate was 1.2 percent for the week ending March 21, unchanged from the previous week's unrevised rate. The advance number for seasonally adjusted insured ... (full story)

U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell last week as layoffs remain sparse despite a softening labor market and rising energy costs due to the Iran war. The number of Americans applying for jobless aid for the week ending March 28 fell by 9,000 to 202,000 from the previous week’s 211,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. That’s fewer than the 212,000 new filings analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting and within the range of the past several years. Filings for unemployment benefits are considered representative of U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of ... (full story)