Washington, Dec 29 (AP) The number of people seeking unemployment benefits rose only slightly last week with the labour market remaining strong despite the Federal Reserve's efforts to cool the economy and hiring.

Applications for unemployment aid for the week ending December 24 climbed 9,000 to 225,000, the Labour Department reported Thursday. The four-week moving average of applications, which smooths out some of the week-to-week swings, slipped just 250 to 221,000.

Also Read | United Furniture Layoffs: Owner David Belford, Who Abruptly Fired 2,700 Employees in Single Night, Calls Move 'Agonising'.

Unemployment benefit applications are a proxy for layoffs, and are being closely monitored by economists as the Fed has rapidly raised interest rates in an effort to cool job growth and inflation.

Should the Fed's rate hikes cause a recession, as many economists fear, a jump in layoffs and unemployment claims would be an early sign.

Also Read | China-Taiwan Conflict: US Approves USD 180 Million Anti-Tank Weapon Sale to Taiwan.

So far, the level of jobless claims remains quite low, evidence that Americans are enjoying a high degree of job security. In the coming weeks, thousands of workers with temporary jobs during the winter holidays will lose work and apply for jobless aid.

The government seeks to seasonally adjust the data to account for those job losses, but the adjustments are not always perfect and the layoff of temporary workers could distort the data.

The Fed is seeking to slow job growth and the pace of wage increases as part of its efforts to battle inflation. The central bank has hiked rates seven times this year, which has made it more expensive for consumers to take out mortgage and auto loans, and raised borrowing rates for credit cards. (AP)

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)