Last week, slightly more Americans filed for unemployment benefits, with jobless claims increasing by 4,000 to 223,000 for the week ending April 5, according to the Labor Department report. This number was lower than the 225,000 anticipated by analysts. The weekly jobless benefits applications are seen as a gauge for layoffs and have fluctuated between 200,000 and 250,000 over the past few years.

Although President Donald Trump announced a temporary halt on most tariff increases, concerns linger about a potential global economic slowdown that could impact the robust labor market. Trump's plans to significantly reduce the federal workforce are already underway.

The effects of the job cuts initiated by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under Elon Musk's leadership are not yet evident in the weekly layoff data. Various federal agencies, including the Department of Health and Human Services, IRS, Small Business Administration, Veterans Affairs, and Department of Education, have either disclosed layoffs or are planning staff reductions.

Despite some signs of softening in the job market over the past year, it continues to be healthy, with numerous job opportunities and comparatively low layoffs. The latest government report showed strong job growth, with U.S. employers adding 228,000 jobs in March. Although the unemployment rate saw a marginal increase to 4.2%, it remains at a satisfactory level historically.

Several prominent companies, such as Workday, Dow, CNN, Starbucks, Southwest Airlines, and Meta, have already announced job cuts this year. The four-week average of jobless applications remained steady at 223,000, and the total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits decreased by 43,000 to 1.85 million for the week ending March 29.