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US jobs recovery slows down
The number of Americans newly claiming unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week to its highest level since January, official figures showed yesterday. New claims rose 13,000 to 380,000 in the week to 7 April, and the previous week’s claims were also revised up from 357,000 to 367,000. Falling numbers of claims over recent months had raised hopes that the economy was accelerating, and economists hope the downward trend can continue.