Filings for U.S. unemployment benefits unexpectedly increased, rising to a five-week high and adding to signs of potential cooling in the labor market.
Jobless claims rose to 222,000 in the week ended June 8, according to Labor Department figures released Thursday. The four-week average, a less-volatile measure, edged up to 217,750.
The third-straight increase follows May job growth that missed all estimates. While jobless claims remain near historically low levels, signs of broader economic weakness are starting to appear in indicators from manufacturing to retail sales.
A separate Labor Department report Thursday showed import prices fell 0.3 percent in May from the prior month, the first monthly decline this year, as export prices dropped 0.2 percent. Agricultural export prices declined 5.3 percent from a year earlier, the most since April 2016, led by a 20.6 percent decrease in soybean prices.
