Unemployment claims for the first time showed an unexpectedly higher jump to 770,000 as the labor market tries to recover from the Covid-19 pandemic that sent more than 22 million Americans to the unemployment line a year ago. informed the Department of Labor on Thursday.
Economists surveyed by the Dow Jones searched a total of 700,000 for the week ended March 13. The total was an increase from 725,000 revised upwards from the previous week.
The report came amid hopes that the US job market is showing real signs of recovery from the coronavirus crisis, which has seen huge areas of the economy shut down or shrunk and has been particularly burdensome for those working in the US. service-related jobs.
Texas, Florida and Mississippi are among the states that have abruptly removed or reduced restrictions due to the pandemic. Pennsylvania is set to reduce its business limits in early April, and other states are expected to follow suit in the wake of warnings from health officials about premature reopening.
The continuing claims, which are one week behind the main number, have been slightly changed to 4.12 million.
With coronavirus cases either declining, or with plateauing and hospitalizations and deaths, both of which suddenly drop, more states have begun to reopen. In addition, the US vaccination rate was about 2.4 million a day, giving further hope that the impact of the pandemic on national health and the economy is declining.
A separate report on Thursday morning showed that production continues to return abruptly.
Philadelphia’s Federal Reserve’s production outlook was 51.8, the difference in percentage points between firms reporting an increase from those declining. It was the largest reading of the index since April 1973.
The number of complaints for the unemployed this week involves the week of the survey that the Bureau of Labor Statistics uses to compile its non-firm payroll report, suggesting that March earnings could be reduced.
The economy has added 545,000 jobs so far in 2021, and the unemployment rate has dropped to 6.2%.
Despite gains in the labor market, the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday that it intends to continue its light monetary policy until the future. The Fed said it will keep short-term lending rates close to zero until the economy reaches full employment, including on income lines, races and genders.
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