206,000 Americans filed new unemployment claims last week, up 2,000 from a revised 204,000, while layoffs remained rare by historical standards.
207,250 was the four-week average, and continuing claims edged up 8,000 to 1.78 million, reinforcing a labor market that is stable for current workers but slow for job seekers.
4.1% unemployment has stayed low partly because employers, wary after post-pandemic labor shortages, are still reluctant to cut staff even as they hold back on new hiring.
5% gross hiring fell to below 5.1 million in July, and employers have added just 61,000 jobs a month this year; economists expect Friday's report to show 65,000 August jobs and a 4.2% jobless rate.