The number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits fell last week to 712,000. The number is the lowest total since early November. The decline in claims is evidence that fewer employers are cutting jobs amid a reduction in confirmed coronavirus cases and signs of an improving economy. Though the job market has been slowly strengthening, many businesses remain under pressure, and 9.6 million jobs remain lost to the pandemic that flattened the economy 12 months ago.
See "US Jobless Claims Fall to 712,000 as Pace of Layoffs Eases", Paul Wiseman, Associated Press, March 12, 2021