Unemployment claims have declined to their lowest level since the coronavirus pandemic last spring, which contributed to signs of a rapid increase in US economic recovery.
Jobless claims, a power of attorney for layoffs, dropped last week to 576,000 from 769,000 a week earlier. This is the lowest weekly figure since March 2020. Claims remain higher than pre-pandemic levels of around 220,000, but economists expect that they will decline as recovery accelerates.
“We are seeing a strong reopening and reinvestment in the economy at this time,” said Kathy Bostjancic, an economist at Oxford Economics. “It was faster than most economists expected.”
Several factors come together to promote growth in the economy. Vaccination rates are driving consumer spending, governments are easing restrictions on businesses and federal stimulus funds are flowing through the economy.
U.S. employers added 916,000 jobs in March and the unemployment rate fell to 6%, from 6.2% in February. Consumers are spending more on gyms, restaurants, hotels and other services that they have avoided in the past year. U.S. retail sales rose 9.8% in March from the previous month, the largest monthly gain since May last year, the Department of Commerce reported Thursday.