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A28 u.s. news
Diabierna 23 aPriL 2021

US jobless claims fall to 547,000, another pandemic low

WASHINGTON (AP) — ally seen as a rough measure bottlenecks in company sup-
The number of Americans of layoffs because only peo- ply chains and the difficulty
applying for unemploy- ple who have lost their jobs some businesses say they are
ment aid fell last week to through no fault of their own having in finding enough
547,000, the lowest point are eligible. But during the workers.
since the pandemic struck pandemic, the numbers have
and an encouraging sign become a less reliable barom- Those issues, in turn, have
that layoffs are slowing on eter. fed concerns that the Federal
the strength of an improv- Reserve's low-interest rate
ing job market. States have struggled to clear policies could fuel a spike in
backlogs of unemployment inflation. Last month, whole-
The Labor Department said applications, and suspected sale prices jumped 4.2% com-
Thursday that applications fraud has clouded the actual pared with a year earlier, the
declined 39,000 from a re- volume of job cuts. In addi- biggest 12-month increase in
vised 586,000 a week earlier. tion, the supplemental feder- nearly a decade.
Weekly jobless claims are al jobless payment, on top of
down sharply from a peak of regular state unemployment Still, consumer prices are, so
900,000 in early January. At which process their claims ployment rate fell from 6.2% aid, might have encouraged far, rising at a more restrained
the same time, they're still far every other week. In Cali- to 6%, well below the pan- more people to apply for pace. They increased 2.6% in
above the roughly 230,000 fornia, recipients of a federal demic peak of nearly 15%. benefits. March from a year earlier,
level that prevailed before the program for the long-term mostly because of a jump
viral outbreak ripped through unemployed jumped nearly The number of available jobs For now, the economy is in gas prices. Excluding the
the economy in March of last 50%, a sign that the state has also jumped in recent showing steady signs of re- volatile food and energy cat-
year. likely processed a backlog weeks, leading many em- covering. Sales at retail stores egories, core inflation rose
of claims that had been filed ployers to complain that they and restaurants soared 10% just 1.6% in the previous 12
"With 135 million Americans earlier. can't find enough workers in March — the biggest in- months.
having received at least one despite still-high unemploy- crease since last May. Federal
dose of a COVID-19 vac- Still, the number of ongo- ment. Several factors may be stimulus checks of $1,400 Economists expect inflation
cination and the economy ing recipients has declined keeping some of those out have been sent to most to rise steadily in the com-
opening up more each day, by about 2.3 million from of work from searching for adults. And Americans who ing months because prices
the number of job opportu- early March, when the figure jobs. They include fears of have kept their jobs have ac- fell about a year ago when
nities will continue to rise," was 19.7 million, evidence contracting the virus, child cumulated additional savings, the pandemic first hit and the
said James Knightley, chief that more people are being care needs and the fact that part of which they will likely economy largely shut down.
international economist at hired. Some long-term un- a federal supplemental un- spend now that states and cit- That makes comparisons to
ING, a European bank. employed may have also ex- employment benefit of $300 ies have loosened business price levels a year ago look
hausted all their benefits. a week, on top of state aid, restrictions and the virus particularly large.

About 17.4 million people means that some low-income wanes.
were continuing to collect The overall job market has workers can receive as much Fed Chair Jerome Powell
unemployment benefits in been making steady gains. or more income from jobless Economic growth is accel- says he expects that higher
the week that ended April Last month, the nation's em- benefits compared with their erating so fast that the prin- inflation to prove temporary
3, up from 16.9 million in ployers added 916,000 jobs, former job's pay. cipal concerns surrounding and that supply bottlenecks
the previous week. Most of the most since August, in a the economy have shifted will eventually clear as ship-
the increase occurred in two sign that a sustained recovery The weekly data on applica- from a high unemployment ping picks up and factories
states, California and Texas, is taking hold. The unem- tions for jobless aid is gener- rate and anemic spending to produce more parts.

COVID-19 hospitalizations tumble among US senior citizens

WASHINGTON (AP) — nation campaign is work- The drop-off in severe cases lag far behind in dispensing In Michigan, which has been
COVID-19 hospitaliza- ing. Now the trick is to among people 65 and older is shots. battered by a recent surge of
tions among older Ameri- get more of the nation's so dramatic that the hospital- infections, hospitalizations
cans have plunged 80% younger people to roll up ization rate among this high- According to U.S. govern- among people in their 50s
since the start of the year, their sleeves. ly vaccinated group is now ment statistics, hospitaliza- have increased 700% since
dramatic proof the vacci- down to around the level of tions are down 60% overall, late February, outpacing all
the next-youngest category, but most dramatically among other age groups.
Americans 50 to 64. senior citizens, who have
been eligible for shots the In Seattle's King County,
That slide is especially en- longest and have enthusiasti- hospital physicians are seeing
couraging because senior cally received them. fewer COVID-19 patients
citizens have accounted for overall, fewer needing criti-
about 8 out of 10 deaths from Two-thirds of American se- cal care and fewer needing
COVID-19 since the virus nior citizens are fully vacci- breathing machines. These
hit the United States. nated, versus just one-third younger patients are also
of all U.S. adults. Over 80% more likely to survive.
Overall, COVID-19 deaths of senior citizens have gotten
in the U.S. have plummeted at least one shot, compared "Thankfully they have done
to about 700 per day on av- with just over 50% among all quite well," said Dr. Mark
erage, compared with a peak adults. Sullivan, a critical care doctor
of over 3,400 in mid-January. at Swedish Medical Center
All told, the scourge has killed The hospitalization rate in Seattle. "They tend to re-
about 570,000 Americans. among those 65 and over is cover a little quicker because
about 14 people per 100,000 of their youth."
The trends mirror what is population, the Centers for
happening in other countries Disease Control and Preven- With enough people vac-
with high vaccination rates, tion reported, citing a sur- cinated, COVID-19 cases
such as Israel and Britain, and veillance system that gathers should eventually begin to
stand in stark contrast to the data from over 250 hospitals fall as the virus finds fewer
worsening disaster in places in 14 states. and fewer people to infect.
like India and Brazil, which