"The good news is the country may have turned the corner in the coronavirus pandemic, but the bad news is economic growth is going to just limp along if it has to carry millions and millions of jobless workers who cannot support themselves and are running out of benefits to pay the bills," said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at MUFG in New York. (Filepic shows Americans lining up to collect jobless claim forms.)
WASHINGTON: The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits dropped below 2 million last week for the first time since mid-March, but remains astonishingly high as companies adjust to an environment that has been significantly changed by COVID-19.
Other data on Thursday showed a jump in the trade deficit in April as the pandemic upended the global flow of goods and services, pushing exports to a 10-year low. The reports buttressed expectations the economy's recovery from the coronavirus crisis would be a long slog even as activity appears to be stabilizing.
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