Jobless Claims Bounce Up From Earlier Weeks' Low Levels

By Mark Memmott

Published April 24, 2014 at 9:03 AM EDT

More than 3,600 people lined up to apply for about 1,000 openings at a job fair earlier this month in New Orleans.

After in which the figures tracked near their lowest levels in seven years, the number of first-time applications for jobless benefits rose more than expected last week.

there were 329,000 such claims filed, up by 24,000 from the previous week's slightly revised figure.

even though the latest number was above expectations, "the rise probably does not suggest a shift in labor market conditions as the underlying trend continued to point to strength. ... The increase probably reflects difficulties adjusting the data for seasonal fluctuations given a late Easter this year and the timing of school spring breaks."

: "The Easter holiday period made it more difficult to adjust the data for seasonal variations. ... Looking beyond the swings, firings have slowed, which probably means employers are gaining confidence the world's largest economy is strengthening."

Mark Memmott

Mark Memmott is NPR's supervising senior editor for Standards & Practices. In that role, he's a resource for NPR's journalists 鈥� helping them raise the right questions as they do their work and uphold the organization's standards.

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Jobless Claims Bounce Up From Earlier Weeks' Low Levels