US Weekly Jobless Claims Seen Underscoring Deepening Economic Slump – By Reuters (VOA News) / April 16 2020
WASHINGTON – Millions more Americans likely sought unemployment benefits last week, lifting total filings for claims over the past month above an astounding 20 million, which would underscore the deepening economic slump caused by the novel coronavirus outbreak.
Thursday’s weekly jobless claims report from the Labor Department will follow dismal data on Wednesday showing a record drop in retail sales in March and the biggest decline in factory output since 1946.
Economists are predicting the economy, which they believe is already in recession, contracted in the first quarter at its sharpest pace since World War II.
Weekly jobless claims, the most timely data on the economy’s health, are being closely watched for clues on the depth of the downturn, when the waves of layoffs may let up and when a recovery might start.
“The decline in economic activity is breathtaking,” said Joel Naroff, chief economist at Naroff Economics in Holland, Pennsylvania. “While we will see an initial upturn once the economy reopens, the strength and length of that recovery is not clear at all.”
Initial claims for state unemployment benefits probably totaled 5.105 million in the week ended April 11, according to a Reuters survey of economists — a staggering number even though lower than the previous week’s 6.606 million. Estimates in the survey were as high as 8 million.
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