Jobless claims increased slightly while layoffs remain historically low, Labor Department reports

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits increased slightly last week, but layoffs over the past few years have remained historically low. 

Unemployment filings in the week ending August 1 increased by 1,000 applications over the previous week, for a total of 199,000, according to Labor Department data reported on Thursday. 

Weekly filings for unemployment are considered to be an indicator of layoffs and provide a real-time measure of the health of the U.S. job market, the Associated Press reported. 

In July, the federal government reported that employers had slowed hiring in June, adding 57,000 jobs, less than half that of the previous month's total and a sign companies are being cautious about labor costs.