Initial applications for US unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest since January, consistent with a recent uptick in the number of job cuts.
Initial claims increased by 9,000 to 221,000 in the week ended March 30, according to Labor Department data released on Thursday. The median forecast in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for 214,000.
Continuing claims, a proxy for the number of people receiving unemployment benefits, decreased to 1.79 million in the week ended March 23.
Although the labor market has remained resilient in recent months, layoffs are on the rise. They reached a ...
