WASHINGTON, DC: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped below 2 million last week for the first time since mid-March, but ...
WASHINGTON, DC: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped below 2 million last week for the first time since mid-March, but remains astonishingly high as companies adjust to an environment that has been significantly changed by COVID-19.
People who lost their jobs wait in line to file for unemployment benefits at an Arkansas Workforce Centre in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Boeing and pipeline operator Energy Transfer have announced layoffs, while some big retailers like JC Penney and high-end chain Neiman Marcus have filed for bankruptcy. States and local governments, whose budgets have been decimated by the COVID-19 fight, are also cutting jobs.
The unemployment rate is forecast to rocket to 19.8 per cent, a post-World War Two record, from 14.7 per cent in April.A separate report on Thursday from the Commerce Department showed the trade deficit jumped 16.7 per cent to US$49.4 billion in April. Exports tumbled a record 20.5 per cent to US$151.3 billion, the lowest since April 2010. That offset a record 13.7 per cent drop in imports to US$200.7 billion.
As part of a fiscal package worth nearly US$3 trillion, the US government greatly expanded eligibility for unemployment benefits to include self-employed and independent contractors who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Neither PUA nor PEUC are included in the initial claims and continuing claims figures, which economists say grossly understates the tragedy caused by COVID-19. Last week, 623,073 PUA applications were processed on top of the 10.741 million during the week ended May 16.
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