By Ovunc Kutlu
ISTANBUL (AA) - The number of Americans filing first-time unemployment claims rose by 8,000 last week to 229,000, according to Labor Department data released Thursday.
The figure came in higher than market estimates of 220,000.
The previous week's reading was revised up by 2,000 from 219,000 to 221,000.
The four-week moving average was 222,250, a decrease of 750 from the previous week's revised average.
The US economy added 175,000 jobs in April, while the unemployment rate rose to 3.9% from 3.8% in March.