The number of people seeking unemployment benefits in the United States remained stuck near a three-month high last week, a sign that hiring has probably slowed since winter. The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications dipped 1,000 to a seasonally adjusted 388,000. It was little changed from the previous week's figure, the highest since Jan. 7. The four-week average, a less volatile measure, rose to 381,750, also the highest in three months. Applications jumped sharply three weeks ago, indicating that employers had stepped up layoffs and added fewer jobs. Economists said the increase might have been inflated by temporary layoffs during the spring holidays, when many school employees are laid off. But applications haven't dropped back since then. Analysts predict that job gains of about 175,000 will be reported for April when the government issues the month's employment report next week. That's below the average of 250,000 jobs added per month from December through February. The report “adds to concern about backsliding in job creation after faster employment gains earlier in the year,” said Jonathan Basile, an economist at Credit Suisse. The increase in applications follows a report this month that hiring slowed in March, when employers added only 120,000 jobs. Still, many economists suggested that weather might have distorted the March job s report. A warmer winter likely pulled some hiring that normally would have occurred last month into January and February. They have noted that the economy has added an average of 212,000 jobs a month in the January-March quarter, well ahead of last year's pace. The Federal Reserve chairman, Ben S. Bernanke, agreed Wednesday that weather has likely disrupted recent data. The warm winter “made perhaps January and February artificially strong and March perhaps artificially a little bit weak,” he said at a news conference. “I wouldn't draw too much conclusion from the March report.” Despite the slowing improvements, the job market appears healthier than it did last year. The unemployment rate has fallen to 8.2 percent from 9.1 percent in August. Part of that drop was related to some people giving up looking for work. People who are out of work but not looking for jobs aren't counted among the unemployed. Economists note that unemployment benefit applications are lower than they were last year.
