New applications for unemployment benefits inched down last week, a sign the labor market remains tight as the broader economy shows signs of slowing.
Initial jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, declined to a seasonally adjusted 231,000 last week from a revised 233,000 the week before, the Labor Department said Thursday. The figure stands just above the 2019 prepandemic weekly average of 218,000, when the labor market was also very strong.
