US applications for jobless benefits fall for sixth straight week, remain at historically low level
The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims for the week ending July 19 fell by 4,000 to 217,000. That's fewer than the 227,000 new applications analysts were expecting.
Applications for unemployment aid are viewed as representative of layoffs.
Earlier in July, the Labor Department reported that U.S. employers added a surprising 147,000 jobs in June, adding to evidence that the American labor market continues to show resilience despite uncertainty over President Donald Trump's economic policies. The job gains were much more than expected and the unemployment rate ticked down 4.1% from 4.2% in May.
Though the job market is broadly healthy by historical standards, some weakness has surfaced as employers contend with fallout from Trump's policies, especially his aggressive tariffs, which raise prices for businesses and consumers. Most economists believe the import duties make the economy less efficient by reducing competition. They also invite retaliatory tariffs from other countries, hurting U.S. exporters and potentially driving businesses to freeze hiring or cut staff.
The deadline on most of Trump's stiff proposed taxes on imports were extended again until Aug. 1. Unless Trump reaches deals with countries to lower the tariffs, economists fear they could act as a drag on the economy and trigger another bout of inflation.
Companies that have announced job cuts this year include Procter & Gamble, Workday, Dow, CNN, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines, Microsoft, Google and Facebook parent company Meta.
The Labor Department's report Thursday showed that the four-week average of claims, which evens out some of the weekly volatility, declined by 5,000 to 224,500.
The total number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits for the week of July 12 remained stable, rising by just 4,000 to 1.96 million.
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