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US sheds 701,000 jobs in face of virus, ending record-long hiring streak

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Copyright 2020 The Associated Press. All rights reserved
Paul Sancya/AP
A closed sign is shown at Romeo & Juliet Furniture and Appliances with an empty parking lot in Detroit, Thursday, April 2, 2020. The coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak has triggered a stunning collapse in the U.S. workforce with 10 million people losing their jobs in the past two weeks and economists warn unemployment could reach levels not seen since the Depression, as the economic damage from the crisis piles up around the world. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
US sheds 701,000 jobs, ending a record-long hiring streak
Posted at 5:44 AM, Apr 03, 2020
and last updated 2020-04-03 08:47:22-04

WASHINGTON (AP) — A record-long streak of U.S. job growth ended suddenly in March after nearly a decade as employers cut 701,000 jobs because of the coronavirus outbreak that’s all but shut down the U.S. economy.

The unemployment rate jumped to 4.4% from a 50-year low of 3.5%.

Last month’s actual job loss was likely even larger because the government surveyed employers before the heaviest layoffs hit in the past two weeks.

Nearly 10 million Americans applied for unemployment benefits in the last two weeks of March, far exceeding the figure for any corresponding period on record.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

Copyright 2020 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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