MW Jobless claims rise to highest level since October, but not from tariff war
By Greg Robb
New York state has big increase, which economists attribute to school holidays
The numbers: Initial jobless claims jumped by 18,000 to 241,000 in the week ending April 26, the Labor Department said Thursday. That's the highest level since early October.
The boost in claims came mainly from a gain in New York, which often sees an unusual increase during the spring around school holidays.
Raw or actual unemployment applications in the state jumped to 30,043 from 14,518.
Key details: The number of new claims based on actual filings - that is, before seasonal adjustments - rose by 12,901 to 223,614 in the latest week.
The number of people already collecting unemployment benefits in the week of April 19 rose by 83,000 to 1.92 million, the government said.
Big picture: Companies are not laying off workers by large amounts, and are still watching and waiting amid uncertainty about how the economy manages the higher tariffs.
The April jobs data, to be released Friday, is expected to be modestly weaker, with job gains of 133,000, down from 228,000 in the prior month. The unemployment rate is expected to remain steady at 4.2%.
Looking ahead: "The deterioration in the timeliest hiring and firing indicators over the last couple weeks suggests that jobless claims will trend up over coming weeks," said Samuel Tombs, chief U.S. economist at Pantheon Macroeconomics.
Market reaction: Stocks SPX opened higher on Thursday. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note fell to 4.147%.
-Greg Robb
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May 01, 2025 09:55 ET (13:55 GMT)
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