Although initial jobless claims were higher than anticipated, they still reflect a labor market in which employers don’t want to fire employees.

The week ending April 16 saw 184,000 first-time benefits claims. This is a decrease of 2,000 over the previous week, but still ahead of the Dow Jones estimate of 182,000.

According to the numbers, the U.S. labor market is still tight. The available workforce has about five million more job openings than the existing one.

The week-to-date number of continuing claims fell by 58,000, to 1.417million, its lowest point since February 21, 1970.

An economic report released Thursday also showed that Philadelphia’s manufacturing sector grew at a slower rate than anticipated in April.

Philadelphia Federal Reserve’s monthly manufacturing indicator registered 17.6. This is the difference in companies experiencing expansion and contraction. This was almost 10 points less than March, and lower than the Dow Jones prediction of 21.9.

From March, the measures of new orders and shipments as well as delivery times, unfilled orders, deliveries, and average employees’ work weeks showed declines. There was an increase in prices paid and received, which is indicative of continued inflation pressures. However, the index of employees also increased.

The Fed’s Summary of Economic Conditions in the U.S., “Beige Book”, published Wednesday. It highlighted the difficulties companies have finding employees.

“Demand for labor continued to be strong throughout most Districts, and all industries. The overall shortage of skilled workers held off hiring, although some Districts showed signs of improvement. Many firms saw significant turnover due to workers leaving for better wages and flexible work schedules.

This is breaking news. Stay tuned for more updates.