Wednesday’s announcement notes the second consecutive week that unemployment claims rose.
Altogether, about 1 million workers filed for benefits last week, when adding claims for Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, a new category of eligibility created for workers pushed aside by the pandemic, such as gig workers whose work dried up.
“New claims for unemployment benefits are moving up, moving in the wrong direction much the same as the pandemic is raging here in the final weeks of a heartbreakingly difficult year,” said Mark Hamrick, Bankrate.com's senior economic analyst.
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The rise in claims appears as coronavirus infections skyrocket all over the country. The nation went from less than 50,000 new daily coronavirus cases in early October to well over 150,000 new cases each day in late November, according to the COVID Tracking Project.
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The peak in virus cases has actually caused many states to limit or prohibit restaurants and bars to be opened.
Seating capacity has been limited in some states such as Connecticut, Kentucky, Louisiana, Montana, Maine, and Maryland.
Restaurants in Michigan can now only provide carryout service.
In New York state, restaurants have to close down from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. daily.
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The wave in COVID-19 infections has begun a backslide in patronage at restaurants, according to OpenTable. In October, reservations were off by about 40% in many restaurants when compared to last year. They are now off by over 70% in many places.
The rise in infections has also reduced consumer confidence.
The increase in infections has provoked consumer confidence to disappear almost completely, according to the Conference Board, a nonprofit think tank that produces economic projections.
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Its latest data, published Tuesday, noted that the economy is not assumed to gain any strength in the following months.
“Heading into 2021, consumers do not foresee the economy, nor the labor market, gaining strength,” said Lynn Franco, senior director of economic indicators at the Conference Board. “In addition, the resurgence of COVID-19 is further increasing uncertainty and exacerbating concerns about the outlook.”
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Its index now stands at only 96.1, dropping from a revised 101.4 in October. The consumer confidence numbers are indexed to 1985, and a number at 100 or higher means that confidence is strong.
Tuesday’s report points out that confidence has fallen from positive territory.
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