The number of mass layoffs by U.S. employers rose in April led by manufacturers who shed workers even as the economy began to recover.

The Labor Department said the number of mass layoff events — defined as job cuts involving at least 50 people from a single employer — increased by 228 to 1,856 as employers shed 200,870 jobs on a seasonally adjusted basis.

The number of mass layoffs in the manufacturing sector totaled 448 resulting in 63,616 initial jobless benefit claims, the department said. That was more than 24,000 higher than the previous month, but well below the 125,000 initial jobless claims in the manufacturing sector a year ago.

The Labor Department said the manufacturing sector accounted for 23 percent of all mass layoffs and 28 percent of the initial claims filed in April.

Read More: -Reporting by Donna Smith, Reuters

The number of people filing new claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week by the largest amount in three months, and a key index of leading economic indicators dropped 0.1% in April, the first decline in more than a year.

Applications for unemployment benefits rose to 471,000 last week, up 25,000 from the previous week, the Labor Department said Thursday. It was the first increase in five weeks and the biggest jump since a gain of 40,000 in February.

The forecast had been for claims to fall around 4,000 from the previous week. The large rise in new claims is evidence of how volatile the job market remains, even as the economy grows.

The total for new claims was the highest since claims stood at 480,000 on April 10. It also pushed up the average for the last four weeks to 453,500.

In its report, the Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators, which forecasts economic activity in the next three to six months, fell. It was the first decline in the index since March 2009. Economists polled by Thomson Reuters had expected a gain of 0.2%.

Read More: – the Associated Press

The manufacturing rebound has been so robust that many factories are struggling to keep up with demand because of bottlenecks in the supply chain.

That’s slowing the broader economic recovery and job growth, some economists say.

Employers added 290,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said Friday, far more than expected. After slashing 2 million jobs in the recession, manufacturers have been among the most active hirers, boosting payrolls by 44,000 in April and 101,000 since December.

But the snags likely prevented factories from adding thousands more jobs, says Sung Won Sohn, economics professor at California State University’s Smith School.

Manufacturers and their suppliers closed plants, cut staff and slashed inventories in the downturn to reduce costs. Now, some say it isn’t so easy to ramp back up quickly. Others hesitate to hire workers or buy equipment despite the growing demand, because they fear it won’t last.

“Companies are not convinced how real (the recovery) is,” says Tom Murphy of RSM McGladrey, a consulting firm.

Read More: – By Paul Davidson, USA TODAY

As global stock markets skidded further Friday, federal regulators were still scrambling to unravel the cause of a nearly 1,000-point midday plunge in the Dow Jones index a day earlier — an event that triggered new criticism that Wall Street trading has grown too risky and needs to be reined in.

Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the market’s nosedive was that it may have been fueled by a computer glitch, human error or trading programs run amok, and that such technical problems could continue to jeopardize the savings of millions of Americans.

“The New York Stock Exchange told me this could happen again tomorrow,” Rep. Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) said Friday. “If that’s the case, we’re in a very serious emergency situation.”

Markets worldwide extended their declines on Friday, with the Dow Jones industrial average falling almost 140 points despite a Labor Department report showing that employers added 290,000 jobs in April, the biggest hiring surge in four years.

Read More: – By Walter Hamilton and Jim Puzzanghera, the Los Angeles Times

The number of U.S. workers filing new applications for unemployment insurance fell slightly less than expected last week, government data showed on Thursday, implying only a gradual labor market improvement.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits dropped 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 448,000 in the week ended April 24, the Labor Department said.

Analysts polled by Reuters had expected claims to fall to 445,000 from the previously reported 456,000, which was modestly revised up to 459,000 in Thursday’s report.

“Claims are still hovering at that tipping point around 450,000, which we think is the junction between corporate hiring and continuing a wait-and-see process,” said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at Ridgeworth Investments in Richmond, Va. “The report is moving in the right direction but is inconclusive.”

Read More: – By Reuters

Wholesale prices rose more than expected last month as food prices surged by the most in 26 years. But excluding food and energy, prices were nearly flat.

The Labor Department said the Producer Price Index rose by 0.7 percent in March, compared to analysts’ forecasts of a 0.4 percent rise. A rise in gas prices also helped push up the index.

Still, there was little sign of budding inflation in the report. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, wholesale prices rose by 0.1 percent, matching analysts’ expectations.

Food prices jumped by 2.4 percent in March, the most since January 1984. Vegetable prices soared by more than 49 percent, the most in 15 years. A cold snap wiped out much of Florida’s tomato and other vegetable crops at the beginning of this year.

Read More: – Christopher S. Rugaber, the Associated Press

U.S. producer prices rose more than expected in March on strong consumer food and gasoline costs, but a small gain in the core measure pointed to tame underlying inflation, a government report showed on Thursday.

The Labor Department said the seasonally adjusted index for prices paid at the farm and factory gate increased 0.7 percent following a 0.6 percent drop in February.

Analysts polled by Reuters had expected producer prices to rise 0.4 percent in March. Compared to March last year, producer prices increased 6.0 percent, the largest advance since September 2008. Producer prices rose 4.4 percent in February, year over year.

Read More: -Reuters

First-time claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week, and while the numbers may have been impacted by seasonal factors they nevertheless diverged sharply from what economists had predicted.

The Labor Department said Thursday that initial jobless claims jumped by 24,000 in the week ended April 10, to 484,000, the largest jump in two months. Economists were expecting a drop of about 15,000 claims.

Read More: – By Tom Granahan, FOXBusiness

Unemployment for male Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans has tripled since the recession began, rising from 5% in March 2007 to 15% last month, Labor Department statistics show.

Read More: – By Gregg Zoroya, USA Today

Unemployment increased in 27 U.S. states in February and dropped in seven, a sign the labor market needs to pick up across more regions to spur consumer spending and sustain the economic recovery.

Mississippi showed the biggest jump in joblessness with a 0.4 percentage point rise to 11.4 percent, according to figures issued today by the Labor Department in Washington. Nationally, unemployment held at 9.7 percent in February for a second month and employers cut fewer jobs than anticipated, figures from the Labor Department showed on March 5.

Today’s report indicates broad-based hiring is yet to develop following the loss of 8.4 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007. Florida, Nevada, Georgia, and North Carolina set record levels of joblessness last month.

Read More: – Bloomberg