WASHINGTON (AP) – More Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, but their numbers remained at low levels consistent with a healthy job market. The Labor Department says the number of people seeking jobless aid rose by 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 265,000. The less-volatile four-week average rose by 750 to 268,000. Jobless claims are a proxy for layoffs. Weekly numbers below 300,000 are historically low. The number of people collecting unemployment checks was 2.24 million, down nearly 7 percent from a year earlier. The U.S. labor market is healthy. Employers added 242,000 jobs last month, and the unemployment rate stayed at an eight-year low 4.9 percent.
