WASHINGTON—The number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week, reaching a four month-high and potentially hinting at some cooling in demand for workers amid tightening financial conditions.
Still, the labor market remains tight as the report from the Labor Department on Thursday also showed the ranks of the unemployed were the smallest in almost 52.5 years in early May. Signs of ebbing demand for labor were also evident in a survey from the Philadelphia Federal Reserve, showing a decline in the share of firms reporting higher employment levels and the average work at factories in the mid-Atlantic region this month….