The number of people seeking U.S. unemployment aid rose last week for the first time in five weeks, but remained at a low level that points to a healthy job market.
The economy added 165,000 jobs in April, bringing the overall unemployment rate down a tick to 7.5 percent. The monthly report from the Labor Department also included upward revisions to the last two reports, helping to ease fears of a slowdown.
Job growth appeared to slow drastically during March, as employers added 88,000 new jobs, down from 268,000 in February. The unemployment rate went down a tick, from 7.7 percent to 7.6, but that was due to a reduction in the labor force.
The Labor Department announced that the U.S. economy added 157,000 jobs in January. The unemployment rate inched upward by a tenth of a point, to 7.9 percent.