The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits hit its highest level in a year last week, even as the job market remains surprisingly healthy in an era of high interest rates.

Jobless claims for the week ending July 27 rose 14,000 to 249,000 from 235,000 the previous week, the Labor Department said Thursday. It’s the highest number since the first week of August last year and the 10th straight week that claims have been above 220,000. Before that period, claims had remained below that level in all but three weeks this year.

Weekly jobless claims are widely considered representative of layoffs, and while they have been slightly higher in recent months, they remain at historically healthy levels.

Strong consumer demand and a resilient labor market helped avert a recession that many economists predicted during the Federal Reserve’s prolonged wave of rate hikes that began in March 2022.

As inflation continues to declinethe Fed’s goal of a soft landing — reducing inflation without causing a recession and mass layoffs — appears to be within reach.

On Wednesday, the Fed left your reference rate aloneBut officials have strongly suggested a cut could come in September if the data stays on its recent trajectory. And recent labor market data suggests some weakening.

The unemployment rate rose to 4.1% in June, despite the fact that American employers added 206,000 jobs. U.S. job openings also fell slightly last month. Add that to the rise in layoffs, and the Fed could be poised to cut interest rates next month, as most analysts expect.

The four-week average of claims, which smooths out some of the weekly ups and downs, rose by 2,500 to 238,000.

The total number of Americans receiving unemployment benefits in the week of July 20 jumped by 33,000 to 1.88 million. The four-week average for continuing claims rose to 1,857,000, the highest since December 2021.

Continuing claims have been rising in recent months, suggesting that some Americans receiving unemployment benefits are finding it harder to get jobs.

There have been job cuts across a range of sectors this year, from agricultural manufacturing Deerefor media such as CNNIt is in another place.

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