Jobless Claims Jump

Wall Street Journal online:

New applications for jobless benefits rose sharply last week, another sign the labor market has appeared to lose momentum.

Separately, the U.S. trade deficit registered its biggest contraction in nearly three years in February, assisted by record exports and a slump in imports of oil and Chinese goods. Meanwhile, U.S. wholesale prices held steady in March, as gasoline costs declined after a sharp increase the prior month.

Initial jobless claims increased by 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 380,000 in the week ended April 7, the Labor Department said Thursday.....

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CNBC:

The number of Americans filing for jobless aid rose last week to the highest level since January, a development that could raise fears the labor market recovery was stalling after job creation slowed in March.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased 13,000 to a seasonally adjusted 380,000, the Labor Department said on Thursday, defying economists' expectations for a drop to 355,000....

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CNN Money:

The number of people filing for unemployment benefits rose to 380,000 last week, another hiccup for the labor market following last week's disappointing monthly jobs report.

Thursday's total marked an increase of 13,000 versus figures from the week prior that were revised upward, and was the highest since late January. Analysts surveyed by Briefing.com had predicted that a total of 355,000 initial jobless claims were filed.

"Sort of a disappointing cringe right off the bat -- not only do we have an increase, but we have an upward revision," said Tim Quinlan, an economist at Wells Fargo. "We certainly would've liked to see numbers in the 350,000's or so."