Around 1.34 million Americans are expected to have filed for jobless claims in data published on Thursday, according to the consensus estimates compiled by Thomson Reuters.
The data will take claims to the week needing 20 June, which contrasts with the 1.5 million Americans filed for claims that were registered the week before.
Initial jobless, from the US Department of Labor, claims have totaled 45.7 million over the last 13 weeks in the pandemic.
Claims have been falling gradually since the week ended 28 March. For three consecutive weeks, initial jobless claims have been below 2 million. However, claims have been above a million for the last 13 weeks.
Meanwhile, despite higher initial jobless claims, the US economy added jobs in May, for the first time since February. Commenting on last week’s claims, James Knightley, the chief international economist at ING said: “The reopening story may not be generating as much momentum for job creation as the surprise May payrolls number had suggested.”
The continuing claims for the people who have already filed for jobless claims in the previous weeks and continue to file for claims were 20.5 million last week. Continuing claims have been stubbornly above 20 million for the last few weeks.
Glassdoor Senior Economist Daniel Zhao said: “The prolonged plateau of over 20 million continuing to claim UI [Unemployment Insurance] benefits despite states reopening sends a strong signal that any labor market recovery will happen in fits and starts.”
Meanwhile, as the US economy has reopened, there are fears of a second wave of infections. On Friday, the US reported 30,000 new cases, the highest since 1 May. Previously, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin had denied the possibility of a shutdown despite concerns over the second wave of infections.
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