Initial jobless claims totaled 276,000 last week, according to the Labor Department.
"This marks 56 consecutive weeks of initial claims below 300,000, the longest streak since 1973," the release noted.
Economists had forecast that the number of first-time filings for unemployment insurance was 265,000 last week, according to Bloomberg.
"The week ending March 26 contained Good Friday, and the varied timing of that holiday across years often generates volatility in the claims data," said JP Morgan's Daniel Silver in a note. "And even with the latest increase in claims, the trend still looks pretty favorable."
Continuing claims totaled 2.173 million, the second-lowest level of the current expansion, according to Bespoke Investment Group.
As claims remain at historic lows, Jefferies senior economist Thomas Simons wrote last week that the revised print for the week of March 5th, at 253,000, was the lowest since November 1973.
On Friday, we'll get the March jobs report, which is forecast to show that the economy added 205,000 jobs.
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