US jobless claims: 1.5m more file for benefits as total hits 46m
A further 1.51m people filed for unemployment benefits last week in the US, taking the total number of claims to 46m.
The figure is a slight drop from the 1.56m who filed for benefits the week before, the US labor department said.
It also marks the 11th week the figure has declined since reaching highs of 6.87m in March.
Over a quarter of the American workforce have lost their jobs due to the pandemic, demonstrating the devastation the crisis has wrought on the world’s largest economy.
The number was higher than analysts’ estimates of 1.3m, despite businesses beginning to reopen after shuttering due to the coronavirus three months ago.
Although a record 2.5m people were hired in May due to the economic restart, the continued high number of jobless claims suggests that the US’ recovery will be long and slow.
Earlier this week Federal Reserve chief Jay Powell told US lawmakers that the economy would not recover fully until the virus was brought under control.
“The longer the downturn lasts, the greater the potential for longer-term damage from permanent job loss and business closures,” Powell said.
Richard Flynn, UK managing director at Charles Schwab, said: “This week’s continued decline in initial jobless claims is a positive sign for markets.
“However, it is unlikely to be enough to calm rising concerns around a potential second wave of Covid-19 infections, especially following the Federal Reserve’s grim economic outlook last week”.
The new figures come after the Federal Reserve predicted a 6.5 per cent decline in GDP this year as well as a 9.3 per cent unemployment rate by the end of 2020.