What Happened:

• According to a report released by the Labor Department on Thursday, 730,000 more Americans claimed first-time jobless benefits over the last week, a massive 111,000 decrease from the previous week and well below the expectations of around 845,000 new claims.

• Although this is a move in the right direction, economists warn that the numbers may be skewed by the extreme weather experienced in much of the country last week and the holidays.

• Continued jobless claims stood at 4.4 million. Programs for people no longer eligible for regular state unemployment claims, such as the Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation program, saw an increase of about 450,000.

• Economists are hopeful that the vaccine rollout and President Biden's new proposed $1.9 Trillion Covid-19 Relief Bill, if passed, will help steady the economic recovery. The House is expected to approve the Relief Bill along partisan lines on Friday.

Photo Source: Pixabay

#newspura #justfactsnoopinions #unemployment #jobsreport #joblessbenefits #economy #covid19 #recovery #labordepartment #news #breakingnews #breaking #covidreliefbill #PEUC