The further decline in jobless claims is a sign of economic recovery in the United States, where activity is gradually picking up, with more than one in four Americans now fully vaccinated. (archives) © KEYSTONE / AP / JEFF CHIU
Unemployment claims continued to decline over the past week in the United States, hitting a new low since the onset of the health crisis, a further sign of the economic recovery that has begun in the country.
Between April 11 and April 17, 547,000 people registered as unemployed, the Labor Department said Thursday.
They were 586,000 the previous week, according to upward revised data, and analysts were anticipating an increase with 600,000 new claims.
Unemployment registrations had fallen sharply the week before, while 742,000 people had still registered the week before, according to data revised downwards.
These numbers are yet another sign that the economic recovery is underway in the United States, where activity is gradually picking up, with more than one in four Americans now fully vaccinated.
All U.S. adults have been eligible for vaccination since April 19, and Joe Biden announced on Wednesday that the target of 200 million injections in the first 100 days of his presidency will be met this week.
But claims for unemployment benefits remain nearly three times higher than the levels that were usual before the pandemic.
In total, a little more than 17 million people received assistance in the face of job or salary loss, all programs combined, during the week ended April 3, up slightly from the previous week.
“Beyond the weekly increases and decreases, the underlying trend has been downward in recent months, signaling improved conditions in the labor market,” noted Rubeela Farooqi, economist for HFE, in a note.
“Exposure to the virus remains a concern for workers, but we expect a continued decline in claims as reopenings continue and job growth picks up in the coming months,” a- she added.
Paradoxically, certain sectors of activity are now struggling to recruit, especially those in which wages are low, and which have been severely affected by the pandemic, such as restaurants and hotels.
Indeed, many unemployed people still fear contracting Covid-19 and many still face childcare problems, as schools have not all reopened full time.
Unemployment benefits are also extended until the end of August, and many take advantage of this unusual delay to try to find a job offering better conditions, in particular the possibility of teleworking.
New jobless claims had jumped, at the end of March 2020, to an all-time high, with more than 6 million new claims in one week, when the country suddenly put its economic activity on hold in the face of the progression of the Covid-19.
ats, awp, afp
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