Associated Press Business Writer Matt Ott
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell again last week as the labor market continues to rise despite fear of a tariff recession.
The Labor Bureau said Thursday that unemployment claims had fallen from 9,000 to 215,000 for the week that ends April 12. That’s well below the forecasts of 225,000 new application analysts.
The weekly application of unemployment benefits is considered a layoff proxy and has been staying mostly between 200,000 and 250,000 for the past few years.
The four-week average of applications that can soften some of the weekly swings has decreased from 2,500 to 220,750.
Despite President Donald Trump suspending or pulling back many of his tariff threats, concerns remain about a global economy slowdown that could overturn what was a historically resilient labor market.
Trump’s promise to significantly reduce the federal workforce, like his pledge to enact tariffs, accounts for much of the early weeks of his presidency, and is still in motion.
It is not clear when the work ordered by government efficiency has been cut, namely “doge,” led by Elon Musk, will emerge in weekly layoff data.
Federal agencies that have announced layoffs or are making plans cuts include the Department of Health and Human Services, the IRS, Small Business Administration, Veterans and the Department of Education.
Despite showing signs of weakening over the past year, the labour market remains healthy with many job openings and relatively few layoffs.
Earlier this month, the government reported that US employers added an incredibly strong 228,000 jobs in March. The unemployment rate has been inched to 4.2%, but he is still a healthy person by historical standards.
Several well-known companies have already announced jobs this year, including Workday, Dow, CNN, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines and Facebook’s parent company Meta.
The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits in the week of April 5 jumped from 41,000 to 1.89 million.
Original issue: April 17, 2025, 8:47am EDT
