JOBLESS CLAIMS REMAIN LOW AS DESANTIS WARNS OF INFLATION
Unemployment claims are back down to where they were pre-pandemic. However, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is warning that issues linked to inflation could push the nation toward a recession.
“I think we’re being prudent by planning ahead so that if that would ever happen, hopefully we’ve got enough juice going on in Florida that we would be able, you know, to ride it out without major dislocations,” DeSantis said during an appearance last week in Monticello.
DeSantis’ comments came before the U.S. Department of Labor estimated last week that 4,964 first-time jobless claims were filed in Florida two weeks ago, with consumers continuing to spend money and businesses maintaining a strong demand for workers.
According to Miami Times, the total was up from the revised count of 4,701 claims during the week that ended March 26, but it is generally on par with recent weeks. The state has averaged 4,610 claims over the past four weeks and 5,721 since the start of the year.
Weeks ago, the Department of Labor reported the U.S. added 431,000 jobs in March – slightly off the consensus projection from economists of 490,000 for the month – with the national unemployment rate going from 3.7% to 3.6%.
With January and February figures revised up in last week’s report, the nation had added 1.685 million jobs since the start of the year.
Yes, the job market appears healthy but that hasn’t erased economic worries.
Economist Daniel Zhao of Glassdoor Economic Research wrote, “The job market is red-hot with high employer demand continually driving healthy job gains and a steady stream of workers back into the labor force.”
However, Zhao added that “The coming months will be a test for the labor market with the Federal Reserve starting to hike [interest] rates, the war in Ukraine disrupting global supply chains, inflation continuing to surge and the stimulus of fiscal relief fading.”
