Little Relief In Unemployment Claims

But the four-week moving average, which is seen as a more stable picture of the unemployment picture, rose 4,500 to 436,750. And economists had expected claims to drop by a further 4,000.

The increases are due to events that seasonal adjustment failed to take into account, said Bloomberg Businessweek: auto plants around the country shut down after the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, for example, and tornadoes caused higher than usual claims in Alabama.

Meanwhile, for the week ended April 23, 7.9