U.S. applications for jobless aid fell again last week to their lowest level since April, further evidence that the job market has withstood aggressive rate hikes by the Federal Reserve as it attempts to cool the economy and bring down inflation.
Applications for jobless aid in the U.S. for the week ending Jan. 28 fell by 3,000 last week to 183,000, from 186,000 the previous week, the Labor Department reported Thursday. It was the third straight week claims were under 200,000 and the fifth straight weekly decline.
Jobless claims generally serve as a proxy for layoffs, which have been relatively low since the pandemic wiped out millions of jobs in the spring of 2020.
The four-week moving average of claims, which flattens out some of the week-to-week volatility, declined by 5,750 to 191,750.
About 1.66 million people were receiving jobless aid the week that ended Jan. 21, down 11,000 from the week before.
