Jobless Claims Fell to a New Pandemic Low Last Week

Unemployment claims declined to the lowest level since the pandemic struck last spring, adding to signs the U.S. economic revival is picking up speed.

Jobless claims, a proxy for layoffs, fell to 576,000 last week from 769,000 a week earlier.

That is the lowest weekly figure since March 2020, but still way above the levels of around 220,000 that prevailed early last year, before the coronavirus pandemic hit the U.S. economy.

“The labor market is on a recovery path,” said AnnElizabeth Konkel, economist at the job site Indeed. “The recovery is 100% tied to the public health situation,” she added.

The economy is showing signs of improvement as vaccination rates power consumer spending, governments relax restrictions on businesses, and households and federal-stimulus funds flow through the economy.

U.S. employers added 916,000 jobs in March, and the jobless rate edged down to 6%, from 6.2% in February. Consumers are spending more on gyms, restaurants, hotels and other services that they had shunned over the past year. The Commerce Department is due to release March retail-sales data on Thursday.

Jobless claims have been especially choppy during the pandemic. States have struggled to process historically high numbers of claims, creating backlogs. Many have also struggled with unemployment-insurance fraud, which can distort weekly claims counts.