US jobless benefit claims fall last week as labour market remains strong despite recession fears

US applications for jobless benefits fell again last week as the labour market continues to hold up despite fears of a tariff-induced recession.Jobless claim applications fell by 9,000 to 215,000 for the week ending April 12, the Labour Department said Thursday (April 17). That’s well below the 225,000 new applications analysts forecast.

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Weekly applications for jobless benefits are considered a proxy for layoffs, and have mostly stayed between 200,000 and 250,000 for the past few years. The four-week average of applications, which can soften some of the week-to-week swings, fell by 2,500 to 220,750.The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits for the week of April 5 jumped by 41,000 to 1.89 million.