The weekly number of applications for unemployment benefits in the United States rose last week to 229,000, that is, 4,000 more than in the previous week, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported Thursday.
In the week ending May 13, there were 1,794,000 people who received this benefit, 5,000 less than in the previous week.
The percentage of unemployed people with benefits in the past week was 1.2% of the active population, the same as in the previous week.
The unemployment rate stood at 3.4% in April, one tenth less than in March, according to the Labor Department.
The numbers of applications contrast with the most serious moment of the pandemic, when in the last week of March 2020 there were 6.8 million Americans who filed for unemployment benefits.
In the week ending May 13, the largest increases in claims for unemployment benefits were in Ohio, with 1,608 more; Connecticut, with 975; Illinois with 868, Tennessee with 640, and Colorado with 599.
In that same week, the largest decreases in applications compared to the previous week were registered in Missouri, with 2,234 less; Massachusetts, with 1,660; New Jersey with 1,016, Pennsylvania with 742, and Virginia with 715.