US applications for jobless benefits, a proxy for layoffs, tick down to 209,000 last week

By MATT OTT, AP Business Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. applications for unemployment benefits inched down modestly last week, remaining at historically healthy levels despite recent high-profile layoff announcements.

Applications for jobless aid for the week ending Jan. 24 fell by 1,000 to 209,000 from the previous week’s number which was revised upward by 10,000, the Labor Department reported Thursday. Analysts surveyed by the data firm FactSet were expecting 205,000 new applications.

Applications for unemployment benefits are seen as representative of U.S. layoffs and are close to a real-time indicator of the health of the job market.

An assortment of high-profile companies have announced job cuts in the past year, including UPS, Amazon and Dow this week alone. That, combined with the government’s own sluggish labor market data, has left Americans increasingly pessimistic about the economy.

Earlier this month, the government reported that hiring remained tepid in December, capping a ye...