Initial claims for unemployment insurance across the U.S. moved above the 300,000 mark last week, according to U.S. Labor Department data released April 13.
For the week ending April 8, first-time claims totaled 313,000, an increase of 12,000 from the previous week's revised figure of 301,000.
However, the department's four-week moving average of initial claims, which generally gives a truer picture of underlying labor market conditions because it smooths out week-to-week changes, declined during the week ending April 8. The four-week average was 307,500, a decrease of 1,500 from the previous week's revised average of 309,000.
