U.S. Employment Data
Jobless Claims Rise
The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose last week to the highest level in more than eight months, offering more evidence that the labor market was steadily cooling. The weekly jobless claims report from the Labor Department on Thursday, the timeliest data on the economy's health, followed news last week that the economy added the fewest jobs in six months in April, while job openings dropped to a three-year low in March. Ebbing labor market momentum has put two interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve this year back on the table.