Filings for unemployment claims south of the border rose by just shy of three million for the most recent reporting period, a number that while still high declined for the sixth straight week.
Numbers compiled by the U.S. Labor Department revealed Thursday a total of 2.981 million new claims for unemployment insurance brought the coronavirus crisis total to nearly 36.5 million, by far the biggest loss in U.S. history. Last week’s count was revised up by 7,000 to 3.176 million.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been expecting 2.7 million new claims.
And apparently, those displaced are still not being brought back to work under a freeze that was supposed to last weeks but now has extended for nearly two months. Continuing claims rose by 456,000 to 22.83 million, after the previous week’s total was revised down to 22.38 million.
The four-week moving average, used to smooth out weekly volatility, also spiked by 2.7 million to 19.76 million.