The economy lost 701,000 jobs and unemployment rose to 4.4% in March as pandemic struck
by Jay Heflin
| April 03, 2020 08:31 AM
The economy lost 701,000 jobs in March, the Labor Department reported Friday in an early sign of the coronavirus pandemic's toll on the labor market.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.4% for March, up from February’s 3.5%, the largest monthly jump in 45 years.
Forecasters had expected the unemployment rate to rise to around 3.9%, with the increase limited because the survey period for the report was earlier in March, before the worst of the pandemic-induced layoffs.
Economists estimate that the underlying unemployment rate, taking into account the past two weeks of job losses, is around 13%.
more
https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/news/the-economy-lost-701-000-jobs-and-unemployment-rose-to-4-4-in-march-as-pandemic-struck
