The number of people filing initial applications for U.S. state unemployment benefits rose last week, but remained below a level associated with an improving labor market, the government reported Thursday. The Labor Department said jobless claims rose 10,000 to 268,000 last week, but claims have been below 300,000-a threshold associated with a strong jobs market-for 69 consecutive weeks, the longest streak since 1973. The four-week moving average of jobless claims-a better gauge of labor-market trends because it smoothes weekly volatility-was unchanged at 266,750 last week. The total number of people receiving unemployment benefits fell 20,000 to 2.12 million last week, while the four-week average of continuing claims fell 13,000 to 2.13 million, the lowest level since late 2000. The low level of layoffs suggests underlying strength in the labor market even though hiring slowed sharply in May, with payrolls increasing only 38,000, the smallest gain since mid-2010. The unemployment rate fell in May to 4.7 percent, the lowest in more than eight years.
