Jobless Claims Soar to 3,283,000, Biggest Jump Ever

Jobless claims rose to 3,283,000 last week, reflecting only the first round of mass layoffs due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Jobless claims are considered the closest thing we have to a real-time indicator of economic conditions, reflecting claims from the prior week. Many pieces of economic data come out with lags of a month or more, which makes it had to rely upon them when the economy experiences a sudden shock.

The three million claims surge easily tops the 1982 record of 695,000.

Claims jumped in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Nine states reporting increases of at least 100,000 from the prior week.

The largest number of claims came from Pennsylvania, with 378,900.