The number of Americans who filed for unemployment benefits slightly increased last week, indicating that the labor market remains stable in April, although economic uncertainty and rising prices due to the war with Iran pose risks of deterioration. Initial claims for unemployment benefits rose by 6,000 to reach 214,000 in seasonally adjusted data for the week ending April 18, the Labor Department reported on Thursday. Economists surveyed by Reuters had forecasted 210,000 claims for the past week.
There are no signs yet of widespread layoffs following the American-Israeli war against Iran, which disrupted navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and raised the prices of oil and other commodities, including fertilizers, petrochemicals, and aluminum.
Tehran effectively closed the strait after the conflict began on February 28. Economists fear that a prolonged conflict could shake an already fragile labor market. Significant tariffs on imports and immigration crackdown measures implemented by President Donald Trump were blamed for labor market difficulties last year. On Tuesday, Mr. Trump indefinitely extended the ceasefire with Iran, even though the blockade of Iranian ports by the U.S. Navy remains in effect.
The data on claims cover the period during which the government surveyed businesses for the “nonfarm payrolls” component of the April employment report. Employment rose by 178,000 in March, after decreasing by 133,000 in February. Employment has declined in six of the last 15 months.
The job market is anchored by low layoffs, even though employers show little appetite for increasing their workforce. The number of people receiving unemployment benefits after an initial week of assistance, an indicator of hiring, rose by 12,000 to 1.821 million in seasonally adjusted data for the week ending April 11, according to the claims report.
If continuing claims have decreased from last year’s peaks, it may partly be because workers have exhausted their benefits, which are capped at 26 weeks in most states. The data also exclude some young unemployed people with little or no work history, a group experiencing challenges in a difficult job market.
