First-time U.S. jobless claims fall for second consecutive week, feds

The number of unemployed U.S. workers filing U.S. jobless claims last week was 779,000, down from last week’s 812,000, the Labor Department said Thursday.

The number of claims also was the lowest in two month, as the coronavirus pandemic that has crippled economies worldwide is now roughly 1-year-old.

Despite the recent decline, the unemployment remains at a record high, considering weekly applications for jobless aid in the U.S. has never exceeded 700,000, even during the Great Recession, according to the Associated Press.

President Biden wants Congress to vote in favor of a $1.9 trillion economic rescue program, in addition to the $900 billion federal aid package approved late last year, in an effort to boost the struggling U.S. economy.