More than 3m Americans filed a claim for unemployment benefits last week, a record high that offers the first nationwide picture of the damage to the US economy from the coronavirus shutdown.
According to data released by the labour department on Thursday, claims rose to 3.3m for the week ending Saturday, from 282,000 the previous week. The data eclipsed consensus expectations of 1.7m, showing the staggering scale of job losses in the first full week of claims since cities and states began to restrict public gatherings and, in some cases, ordered residents to stay home.
“Nearly every state providing comments cited the Covid-19 virus impacts,” the labour department said on Thursday. States reported hotels and restaurants had been hit particularly hard, as well as entertainment, transportation, manufacturing, and healthcare and social assistance.