With the increased distribution of vaccines and the enforcement of pandemic safety measures like wearing masks and practicing social distancing, workers in the US have been gradually rejoining the workforce in the past few months after a challenging year of uncertainty. Although the job market still has progress to make before reaching pre-pandemic levels, recent reports on unemployment benefit claims show an encouraging trend.
The most recent report from the US Department of Labor indicates that new filings for unemployment benefits dropped to 547,000 last week. This figure represents an improvement from the previous week, which saw around 586,000 claims, and marks the lowest number of claims since the pandemic began in March last year. It also surpasses the projected 617,000 new claims by analysts. While continuing unemployment claims still remain in the millions, there has been a positive shift with approximately 3.67 million claims, about 34,000 fewer than the previous week. This is almost half of the peak level of continuing claims observed at the start of the pandemic in April 2020.
New jobless claims hit a pandemic low of 547,000 last week, indicating a strengthening labor market. https://t.co/LCo9JCmQ4k
— The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ) April 22, 2021
“Unemployment Insurance claims have decreased across many states, suggesting a broad-based decline rather than being isolated to a few states,” noted Glassdoor senior economist Danial Zhao on Twitter. “Although claims are still more than double pre-crisis levels, progress is being made.”
Furthermore, the retail sector, which faced significant challenges as more people stayed home and opted for online shopping, is also experiencing a revival. In March, retail sales surged by a combined 9.8% as shoppers regained trust in the safety and convenience of brick-and-mortar stores.
