New claims for jobless benefits rose in the U.S. rose during the last week of April to the highest level in eight months while first quarter productivity gained, weakening the outlook for the jobs market, according to Reuters. On Thursday, the Labor Department reported that new claims for unemployment benefits increased by 43,000 in the week ending Apr. 30 to a seasonally adjusted level of 474,000, which is the highest mark since the middle of August. Economists had been expecting claims to ease to 410,000, and the report cited several factors, including spring break and an emergency benefits program, for the unexpected increase.
Nonetheless, the data was not well received by analysts, with Harm Bandholz of UniCredit Research asserting, “We do not think that the entire rise in claims over the last month can be explained by special factors alone.” Bandholz said, “The improvement in the labor market slowed a bit,” as even the four-week average of new claims added 22,250 to 431,250, which is the highest in about six months. A separate report from the Labor Department showed that non-farm productivity increased by 1.6% in the first quarter year-over-year, slowing from the 2.9% annual growth posted in the last three months of last year.
