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Investing.com - The number of Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits edged lower last week, as the U.S. labor market remains broadly resilient despite recent tariff-fueled economic uncertainty.
Initial jobless claims for the week ended on July 19 came in at 217,000, down from 221,000 in the prior week and below economists’ estimates of 227,000, data from the Labor Department showed on Thursday.
The four-week average, which aims to account for volatility in the weekly figure, was 224,500, down slightly from 229,500.
Continuing claims, a proxy for hiring aim to assess the number of people who are currently receiving jobless benefits, stood at 1.955 million, compared with a previous reading of 1.951 million. This was below projections of 1.960 million.
Economists have suggested that a higher number of people receiving benefits after an initial week of aid could signal an increase in the unemployment rate. The jobless rate dipped to 4.1% in June after holding steady at 4.2% for nearly three months.
The uptick in continuing claims comes as recent numbers have indicated that some laid off workers are experiencing longer spells of unemployment due to a moderation in hiring activity. Still, dismissals have stayed broadly low and workers have been widely reticent to seek new roles against a murky backdrop.
U.S. President Donald Trump has announced a trade deal with Japan this week, while media reports say Washington is making progress on an agreement with the European Union. Trump’s elevated "reciprocal" tariffs on a number of major U.S. trading partners, including the EU, Mexico and Canada, are due to take effect on August 1.