Author: BigGuy

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Powell: Upward pressure on prices likely only temporary

(Reuters) -The U.S. Federal Reserve plans to keep its super-easy policy in place even as data shows the economy kicking into higher gear, with policymakers predicting on Thursday that an expected increase in prices this year will fade on its own, and warning about the recent uptick in COVID-19 infections. “Cases are moving back up here, so I would just urge that people do get vaccinated and continue socially distancing,” Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who has had his shots, said at an economic forum during virtual International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings. “We don’t want to get another outbreak; even if it might have less economic damage and kill fewer people, it’ll slow down the recovery.”

Speaking at a separate event, St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President James Bullard said the Fed should not even discuss changes in monetary policy until it is clear the pandemic is over, tying future Fed discussions tightly to the success of the vaccination effort.

The Fed has said it will keep buying $120 billion in bonds a month until it sees “substantial further progress” toward meeting the central bank’s employment and inflation goals. Bullard said he regards that as contingent on beating the coronavirus. “We have to get the pandemic behind us first,” he said. “There are still risks, and things could go in a different direction.” The Fed has long said the virus, which touched off the sharpest downturn in decades just over a year ago, will determine the course of the recovery. Some 3 million Americans are getting vaccinated every day, and a majority of older Americans at highest risk of dying from COVID-10 have been fully vaccinated. That, along with last month’s $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package and the Fed’s near-zero interest rates, sets the economy up for what Fed officials expect to be the fastest growth in 40 years this year. But new variants of the virus are driving surges in caseloads in swaths of the Midwest and Northeast particularly. Minneapolis Fed President Neel Kashkari told the Economic Club of New York in yet another virtual event on Thursday that those variants, and the school and daycare center closures they could force, are the “biggest risks” to the U.S. recovery. Meanwhile, much of the world has barely begun mass vaccinations, posing what policymakers said was another risk. Fed policymakers do expect a surge in spending in coming months, along with bottlenecks in supply, to push prices higher this year. They say that’s unlikely to turn into the kind of upward spiral in prices that would constitute worrisome inflation and require the Fed to respond with rate hikes. “We think there will be upward pressure on prices which may be passed along to consumers in the form of price increases – we think that that will be temporary,” Powell said, noting that inflation has been low for 25 years, feeding into a psychology of low inflation expectations. And despite a government report last week showing U.S. employers added nearly a million jobs last month, there are still nearly 9 million fewer employed people in the American economy than there were before the pandemic. Powell said he would want to see “a string of months like that so we can really begin to show progress toward our goals.” The unevenness of the recovery, too, is a serious issue, Powell said, with minorities, women and workers in sectors like leisure and hospitality faring worse than others. Fed policymakers boosted their forecasts for growth, inflation and employment this year, but Powell noted that would not necessarily feed into any policy change. To judge whether it was time to reduce asset purchases, Powell said, “we are not really looking at forecasts for this purpose, we are looking at actual progress” on inflation and employment.

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Ketchup shortage in restaurants across United States

Nick Bit: When ever i see or hear about ketchup i always remember the “The Ketchup Song” filmed and recorded by the Spanish pop group Las Ketchup. The music video was shot at Palm Beach, Estepona in Spain, at Chiringuito bar. The song and the video were a joke. Everyone was amazed when it went viral. At the time i was using the same studio to put up videos for our financial news broadcasts. At that time we were travailing on the south coast of Spain and i had to use outside studios. THe Yacht was on dry dock so i needed a studio for about a week. I had finished making a weekend video and as we were leaving the broadcast center we got invited for a seafood brunch and to be extras for the shoot. If you look carefully you can see a glimpse of me for a few frames (I have on a yellow Hawaii style shirt) And several shots of the kids in the video. It was released in July 2002 (remember we were making a stock market killing back then) as the ketchup song became a lead single from the bands debut album, Hijas del Tomate. The song was a joke. They were going to have a studio session and decided to have a party at the Palm Beach bar and shoot a practice session. No one ever dreamed the video would became a major flamenco Europop fusion hit with “Aserejé” (released as The Ketchup Song” in the UK and other countries) In the summer of 2001.

And now i must report to you the present Ketchup stock market indicator. Heinz confirmed to USA TODAY on Tuesday that the company will expand its efforts to address an unlikely byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic that has impacted restaurants and fast food chains across the United States: a ketchup packet shortage. Manufacturing lines will be increased by about 25 percent to produce more than 12 billion packets a year. In wake of the pandemic, the CDC issued guidelines urging Americans to “avoid using or sharing items that are reusable, such as menus, condiments, and any other food containers,” and instead, use “single serving condiments,” such as ketchup packets. The Wall Street Journal reports the price of packets have risen 13 percent since January 2020. Even though Heinz “made strategic manufacturing investments at the start of the pandemic to keep up with the surge in demand for ketchup packets driven by the accelerated delivery and take-out trends,” the company still wasn’t able to meet the country’s overwhelmingly high demands, as tabletop bottles were no longer being used. In November, Heinz attempted to “further meet changing restaurant needs” with the creation of the no-touch dispenser. Ketchup is only the beginning. Bloomberg reports the price of pepperoni has nearly doubled in some cases due to an increased demand for pizza and fewer workers at pork processing plants since they must abide by social distancing requirements. The widely-covered, and often joked about blockage of the Suez Canal could also lead to a number of shortages since about 10 percent of global trade passes through the canal. The most notable items that could soon begin to feel the crunch are toilet paper, and coffee.

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Jamie Dimon says economic boom fueled by deficit spending, vaccines could ‘easily run into 2023’

Jamie Dimon is bullish on the U.S. economy – at least for the next few years. Dimon, the long-serving JPMorgan Chase CEO and chairman, sees strong growth ahead for the world’s biggest economy, thanks to the U.S. government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic that has left many consumers flush with savings, according to his annual shareholder letter. “I have little doubt that with excess savings, new stimulus savings, huge deficit spending, more QE, a new potential infrastructure bill, a successful vaccine and euphoria around the end of the pandemic, the U.S. economy will likely boom,” Dimon said in the letter. “This boom could easily run into 2023 because all the spending could extend well into 2023.” Dimon, who managed JPMorgan through the 2008 financial crisis, helping create the biggest U.S. bank by assets, pointed out that the magnitude of government spending during the pandemic far exceeds the response to that previous crisis. The longer-term impact of the reopening boom won’t be known until years into the future, he said, because it will take time to ascertain the quality of government spending, including President Joe Biden’s proposed $2 trillion infrastructure bill. “Spent wisely, it will create more economic opportunity for everyone,” he said. Dimon, 65, weighed in on a range of topics familiar to watchers of the country’s most prominent banker: He promoted JPMorgan’s efforts to create economic opportunities for Americans who have been left behind, highlighted threats to U.S. banks’ dominance from fintech and Big Tech players, and opined on public policy and the role of corporations to help bring about change. While Dimon called stock market valuations “quite high,” he said that a multi-year boom may justify current levels, because markets are pricing in economic growth and excess savings that make their way into equities. He said there was “some froth and speculation” in parts of the market, but didn’t say where exactly. “Conversely, in this boom scenario it’s hard to justify the price of U.S. debt (most people consider the 10-year bond as the key reference point for U.S. debt),” Dimon said. “This is because of two factors: first, the huge supply of debt that needs to be absorbed; and second, the not-unreasonable possibility that an increase in inflation will not be just temporary.” While he is bullish for the economy’s immediate future, there are serious challenges ahead for the U.S., Dimon said. The country has been tested before – though conflicts starting with the Civil War, the Great Depression and the societal upheaval of the 1960s and 1970s, he said. “In each case, America’s might and resiliency strengthened our position in the world, particularly in relation to our major international competitors,” Dimon said. “This time may be different.” The past year highlighted challenges for U.S. institutions, elected officials and families, as our country’s rivals see a “nation torn and crippled by politics, as well as racial and income inequality – and a country unable to coordinate government policies (fiscal, monetary, industrial, regulatory) in any coherent way to accomplish national goals.” The country ultimately needs to “move beyond our differences and self-interest and act for the greater good,” Dimon said. “The good news is that this is fixable.”

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All adults in US will be eligible for vaccination by April 19 – Biden

President Biden announced Tuesday that he is moving up the deadline for states to open up COVID-19 vaccinations to all U.S. residents 18 and older by about two weeks. Less than a month after directing states to expand eligibility to all adults by May 1, Biden changed that deadline to April 19.

“No more confusing rules, no more confusing restrictions,” Biden said.

The president made his announcement after visiting a vaccination site at Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, an Episcopal institution founded in 1823. His visit was intended to highlight the participation of religious organizations in the vaccination effort. Most states have either made vaccines available to all residents 16 and older or announced plans to do so by mid-April. The White House did not say how it intends to get the handful of remaining states to move up their timelines. Officials announced at the end of March that nearly half of states were set to expand eligibility to all adults by April 15, and that 46 states and Washington, D.C., would do so by May 1. In the weeks since, the remaining four states — New York, Wyoming, South Carolina and Arkansas — have all opened vaccines to the general public.

Biden also announced that the U.S. administered 150 million doses in his first 75 days in office, a pace that puts the administration on track to surpassing his previously stated goal of reaching 200 million doses in his first 100 days.

The country is averaging 3.1 million shots per day over a seven-day period, White House officials said Monday, and reached a new milestone over the weekend with an unprecedented 4 million vaccinations recorded in one day. Nearly 1 in 4 adults are fully vaccinated, officials added. According to NPR’s vaccine tracker, 18.8% of the U.S. population is fully vaccinated, and 32.4% has had at least one dose. The states with the highest percentage of their populations vaccinated include New Mexico, South Dakota, Alaska, Rhode Island and Maine.

 

 

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US Job openings up to 7.4 million in February — more proof of ultra-strong labor market

The number of U.S. job openings rebounded to a near-record 7.49 million in March, showing that companies are still ready and willing to hire even though the economy is not growing as rapidly as it was a year earlier. Job openings had fallen to nine-month low of 7.14 million in February, when hiring was crimped by poor weather and the lingering effects of a partial government shutdown. Openings hit an all-time high of 7.63 million last November. Transportation and warehousing companies — the firms that deliver internet packages — increased help-wanted ads by 87,000. Job listings for construction rose 73,000. And real estate-related job openings climbed by 57,000. The share of people who left jobs on their own, known as the quits rate, was flat at 2.5% among private-sector employees. The rate was unchanged at 2.3% for all workers including those in government. More workers tend to quit when they feel secure enough to leave one job for another — a sign of a healthy economy. The quits rate has risen steadily in the past decade from a post-recession low of 1.4%, though it appears to have peaked. A strong labor market is acting as guardrails for the U.S. economy, keeping it on track to break the record for longest expansion ever in a few months. The rate of unemployment fell last month to a nearly 50-year low of 3.6% and layoffs are also at a half-century low. Job openings have now exceeded the number of unemployed Americans for 13 straight months,” noted Julia Pollak, a labor economist at employment marketplace ZipRecruiter. “This report is a calming return to the trend we’ve seen for years now: high labor demand translating into a slow but steady increase in worker confidence,’said Nick Bunker, an economist at Indeed Hiring Lab. “This uptick is a positive sign, though year-over-year growth in job postings is still on the decline.”

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GM deliveries in China surge 69% in Q1, US car sales soaring too

GM and its joint ventures delivered more than 780,000 vehicles in China in the first three months, a 69% increase in comparison to the same period last year when it was negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company’s rebound was driven by performance in luxury and premium vehicles, as well as midsize and large MPVs and SUVs.The carmaker added it is also introducing cutting-edge EV technology in China with the industry’s first hyper-scale battery platform Ultium. The first product that will use Ultium in China, the Cadillac LYRIC SUV, is slated to debut at Auto Shanghai 2021 in late April. US car sales are also booming. Automaker sales figures are streaming in, both for the month of March and for the first quarter of 2021. The news is generally good, and in some cases, really good with near-universal increases in the double digits and some brands even reporting triple-digit jumps. March 2021 was something of a perfect storm for record-setting sales, as a year ago saw COVID-19-related shutdowns crippling the auto industry hard. COVID is obviously still an issue, but with markets generally open and shoppers flush with stimulus payments, March 2021 was an extremely active period for new car purchases.

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Dow Futures Leap After Blowout Jobs Report; Tesla Gains on Deliveries

The strongest job gains since last August, as well as a coronavirus vaccine rollout that is reaching 4 million Americans a day, has U.S. stock futures on the move Monday.

https://youtu.be/P8UEkAzF8z0

  • Global stocks build on April gains following last week’s blowout jobs report that could mark a turning point in the U.S. pandemic recovery.
  • Employers added 916,000 new jobs in March, a much higher-than-expected total that tips the headline unemployment rate to 6%.
  • Benchmark 10-year note yields rise to 1.718% following last week’s jobs report, with Fed Funds now pricing in a 15% chance of a December rate hike.
  • Oil prices slide as OPEC leaders agree to a gradual increase in production levels by the end of May, with Saudi Arabia phasing out its voluntary cuts by the end of July.
  • CDC data shows 61.5 million Americans have now been fully vaccinated against the coronavirus, with more than 165 million doses administered as of Sunday.
  • U.S. equity futures suggest a firmer open on Wall Street heading into a muted week of economic and corporate releases, with focus soon shifting to second quarter earnings from the banking sector on April 14.

U.S. equity futures moved higher Monday, while bond traders began pricing in a Federal Reserve rate hike by the end of the year, following a blowout March jobs report last week that looks to mark a turning point in the economy’s pandemic recovery. Employers added a much more-than-expected 916,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department said in a rare Good Friday release, tipping the headline unemployment rate to 6%. An upward revision of the February tally, which was finalized at 468,000, added to evidence that state re-openings – aided by an accelerating vaccine rollout – will likely boost hiring in the months ahead. However, with the economy rolling into a full-fledge spring hiring boom, and consumers fueled by the recent $1.9 trillion American Rescue Act, fixed income markets are growing increasingly concern over the near-term chances of faster inflation, even as average hourly earnings slowed in last month’s jobs report. Benchmark 2-year Treasury note yields jumped to 0.19% in overnight trading, the highest in 18 months, while the CME Group’s FedWatch tool suggested a 16% chance of a Federal Reserve rate hike before the end of the year, up from around 4% at the beginning of last month. That hasn’t dented U.S. equity futures as yet, with contracts tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average indicating a 205-point opening bell gain and those linked to the S&P 500, which closed above the 4,000-point mark for the first time last week, priced for a 20-point advance. Rate moves did, however, hold back Nasdaq Composite futures, which are priced for a modest 55-point bump as benchmark 10-year note yields edged higher, to 1.718%, in holiday-thinned overnight trading. Tesla shares look set to pace premarket gainers after posting forecast-beating first quarter delivery numbers Friday thanks to China demand for its Model 3 sedan, with traders pricing in a 7.7% advance to $712.88 per share. Oil prices were on the back foot, with WTI crude sliding back towards the $60 mark, after OPEC leaders, as well as non-member allies such as Russia, agreed to gradually increase their collective output by the end of May, a move that will add around 350,000 barrels of oil to the market each day. Saudi Arabia also agreed to phase it out own voluntary cuts, which are taking 1 million barrels from the market each day, by the end of July. WTI futures contracts for May delivery fell $1.30 overnight to $60.19 per barrel while Brent futures contracts for June, the global benchmark, were last seen $1.41 lower at $63.45 per barrel. Easter Monday holiday kept most markets in Europe closed for the session, with many in Asia also shut for the traditional Christian observance. Japan’s Nikkei 225 ended the session 0.79% higher at 30,089.25 points as the yen weakened to a near one-year low of 110.61 against the greenback, while the region-wide MSCI ex-Japan benchmark was little changed from Friday’s close heading into the final hours of trading.

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US has administered 157.6 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines: CDC

WASHINGTON: The United States has administered 157,606,463 doses of COVID-19 vaccines in the country as of Friday (Apr 2) morning and distributed 204,719,335 doses, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. The tally is for Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, and Johnson & Johnson’s vaccines as of 6:00am ET on Friday, the agency said. The agency said 101,804,762 people had received at least one dose while 57,984,785 people are fully vaccinated as of Friday. A total of 7,735,342 vaccine doses have been administered in long-term care facilities, the agency said. More than 100 MILLION Americans – one third of the adults – have received at least one dose of COVID-19 vaccine The US has officially vaccinated 100 million Americans with one or more dose of COVID-19 shots That means about a third of American adults have or will soon have some degree of protection against COVID-19 About 17.5% of Americans are now fully vaccinated against the disease CDC said Friday fully vaccinated Americans can safely travel domestically or internationally without testing or before departure or quarantining upon arrival.

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NOT OVER YET Covid ‘super mutation’ may cause ‘devastating’ new outbreak & beat vaccines if we leave lockdown too soon, experts warn

COVID could mutate into a new super variant which could beat vaccines, make people sicker and reinfect victims in a devastating new outbreak, leading experts have warned.

COVID could mutate into a new super variant which could beat vaccines, make people sicker and reinfect victims in a devastating new outbreak, leading experts have warned. Scientists told The Sun Online about the need to vaccinate as many people as possible and stick to the lockdown rules as it is feared the rapidly changing virus could overwhelm our current arsenal of vaccines. The experts hammered home the need to rob Covid of the rapid person-to-person transmission which helps it develop mutations. And they warned possible new variants in the future could make people sicker and re-infect people who had already developed antibodies in a “very, very scary” new outbreak. It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson pleaded with Brits to stick to the rules as we go into the long weekend for Easter so the UK can keep to its plan to unlock totally by June. Hot weather earlier this week already saw thronging parks and beaches amid fears it could trigger a new wave despite months of lockdown pain finally leading to plunge cases. Covid variants and mutations have been popping up around the world – with various tweaks appearing to make it more transmissible. Fears have loomed for months that a mutant Covid variant could become significantly more deadly. Meanwhile, scientists in India claimed they have identified a new variant that carries two mutations. And variants first identified in South Africa and Brazil contain the E484K mutation, which is thought to be make the bug evade vaccines.

Studies so far have shown the Pfizer and AstraZeneca jabs do work against current known variants. It comes amid fears the E484K mutation could make them slightly less effective. The latest results from Pfizer show the vaccine does protect against the South African strain, raising hopes the same will be true for the Brazil variant.

The best ways to avoid this are to vaccinate as many as we can – and reduce transmission – and to stay in lockdown until as many as we can are vaccinated

Dr Tony Lockett

Dr Tony Lockett, from King’s College London’s Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, told The Sun Online about the prospect of a devastating new mutation – and urged Brits to stick to the rules. He said: “The effect – well it could be devastating – much worse than the original as younger people could become sicker and those who have had the virus get reinfected with the new strain “Its really very scary.” It comes as it was warned coronavirus mutations could render vaccines redundant in less than one year, according to a survey of epidemiologists by The People’s Vaccine Alliance. Dr Lockett explained some mutations arise when the virus infects people who cannot beat it with their immune system. The expert added: “Uncontrolled proliferation leads to the virus replicating more actively and hence mutation is more likely. “Patients with poor immune systems are therefore are a possible source of mutations.” He went on: “The causes of mutations are therefore allowing vulnerable subjects to get exposed. “The best ways to avoid this are to vaccinate as many as we can – and reduce transmission – and to stay in lockdown until as many as we can are vaccinated. “As Chris Whitty has indicated speeding the lockdown release will lead to more transmission and so more likely mutants – or existing mutants spreading – so the mutations are fed by meeting up and not getting vaccinated.”

[Mutations] are already on the way to becoming immune to our current vaccines.
Professor Ravi GuptaCambridge Institute for Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease

Harvard Professor Dr William Hannage explained it is key to stop the new variants before they can get a foothold as it stops the spread which fuels the mutations. He told The Sun Online: “At the moment there is a lot of concern around E484K, a mutation in the spike protein which is thought to help the virus sidestep immunity from prior infection and is found in several of the variants. “While it looks like vaccines should still offer protection, at least from severe disease, this is one to watch. “It is why the government has been so keen to stop B.1.351 (the South African variant) from getting a toehold in the UK, because one of the mutations characterizing that variant is E484K. “There are a few others as well which make antibody treatments less effective.” Scientists are already working on tweaked vaccines to help deal with new mutations in future, much like the flu vaccine which is altered every year. Ravi Gupta, a professor of Clinical Microbiology at the Cambridge Institute for Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Disease said: “(Mutations) are already on the way to becoming immune to our current vaccines. “For example, the AstraZeneca study did not do well against the South African strain. “The virus is already on its way to becoming resistant to what we have at the moment. There’s evidence the same mutations are cropping up again and again. “For example, the Brazil and South African variants have this E484K mutation that really makes it hard for our antibodies to neutralise and stop the virus from causing infection.” There has been growing concern over the spread of South African and Brazilian variants of coronavirus in Europe as a third wave of Covid-19 sweeps across the continent. A string of countries have gone back into lockdown or tightened up measures again in response to spiking infection rates. Speaking in a video on social media this morning, the Mr Johnson isued a warning to anyone planning to see loved ones for the first time in months over Easter. He said the country is “not yet” at the stage where families and friends can meet inside, even if they have been vaccinated. Mr Johnson added: “We’re very much in a world where you can meet friends and family outdoors under the rule of six or two households. “And even though friends and family members may be vaccinated, the vaccines are not giving 100 per cent protection and that’s why we just need to be cautious. “We don’t think they entirely reduce or remove the risk of transmission.”

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US nonfarm payrolls up by 916,000 in March

March unemployment rate falls to 6%

  • Nonfarm payrolls handily topped Wall Street estimates, rising 916K in March, the Labor Department reports, compared with economist forecasts for a rise of around 650K.
  • The jobless rate dipped to 6% from 6.2%, in line with forecasts.
  • The report will be welcome news to those on Wall Street hoping for economic data to start to show concrete results of a strong recovery after the success of the recovery trade in Q1.
  • It’s the biggest number of jobs created since August.
  • Revisions to the previous two months also added 156K jobs.
  • Private sector jobs rose by 780K vs. expectations of 643K.
  • Leisure and hospitality added 280K jobs, with 176K coming from food services and drinking places. Arts, entertainment and recreation added 64K jobs.
  • Labor force participation was a bit of a concern, edging up barely to 61.5%.
  • That’s “suggesting that labor supply may soon become the constraint on this recovery,” Julia Pollack, labor economist at ZipRecruiter, tweets.
  • Average hours earnings fell unexpectedly by 0.1% for the month, compared with an expected rise of 0.1%. That could be driven by workers in more lower wage sectors being hired as areas continue to open up.
  • Wage inflation still looks a long way off.
  • The average hourly work week rose 0.3 hour to 34.9 hours, suggesting there employers are still pushing current workers for more. But that could bode well for job gains in future months as that hits a plateau.
  • The numbers bode well for cyclical stocks to continue to outperform, but technology dominated this past week.

(Bloomberg) — U.S. employers added the most jobs in seven months with improvement across most industries in March, as more vaccinations and fewer business restrictions supercharged the labor market recovery. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 916,000 last month and February employment was revised up to a 468,000 gain, according to a Labor Department report Friday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists was for a 660,000 rise. The unemployment rate fell to 6%.

graphical user interface: U.S. economy added 916,000 jobs in March, the most since August © Bloomberg U.S. economy added 916,000 jobs in March, the most since August

Rising Covid-19 infections had severely restrained the labor market for months, but now more than two million Americans are getting vaccinated daily and economic activity is picking up. This also helps explain why the workforce participation rate edged up in March. What’s more, businesses have a clearer view of potential demand as a wave of stimulus-supported consumer spending is poised to wash over the nation’s service providers. Local and state government education employment increased by about 126,000, reflecting the return of more in-person learning at schools. “The end of the pandemic appears to be in sight as vaccine distribution accelerates, and the economic recovery looks like it’s champing at the bit,” Daniel Zhao, senior economist at Glassdoor, said in a note. “We may be looking at a bright summer with monthly gains of over a million jobs, getting us much closer to pre-pandemic employment.” While stronger sales and daily progress in the fight against the coronavirus will help bring the labor market closer to its pre-pandemic employment levels, a full recovery will take time. U.S. Treasury yields received a bump higher following the report, with the 10-year rate climbing as high as 1.69%, although it remained within around 2 basis points of its prior day close. U.S. stocks are closed Friday for a holiday.

The payroll figures showed broad-based gains across industries, led by a 280,000 surge in leisure and hospitality. Construction payrolls jumped 110,000 after dipping in February amid severe winter weather. Education employment also climbed as more schools reopened. Manufacturing employment increased by 53,000 last month, the biggest advance since September.

chart: Path to Recovery © Bloomberg Path to Recovery

The $1.9 trillion stimulus package signed last month by President Joe Biden should give an additional shot of adrenaline to hiring amid renewed support for businesses and individuals. Labor Department Secretary Marty Walsh called the jobs report “very encouraging,” in an interview on Bloomberg Television. But he said, “we still have a long way to go.” In addition, the sweeping infrastructure plan that Biden unveiled Wednesday will help to “reinvigorate labor” and the economy in the future, Walsh said. A report Thursday from the National Federation of Independent Business showed a record share of small-business owners in March said they had unfilled positions. That indicates employment will remain strong in coming months. Further, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell has pledged the central bank will continue to support the economy with accommodative monetary policy, despite the recent uptrend in economic and employment data. Even with the sharp advance in March, payrolls remained 8.4 million below the pre-pandemic peak of about 152.5 million. “The recovery is far from complete,” Powell said at the House Financial Services Committee hearing on March 23. “As we have emphasized throughout the pandemic, the path of the economy continues to depend on the course of the virus.” The U-6 rate, also known as the underemployment rate, declined to 10.7% from 11.1%. It is often thought of as a more inclusive measure of unemployment than the headline figure because it also accounts for those who stopped looking for a job because they were discouraged about their prospects and those working part-time but desiring a full workweek. The participation rate, which is the share of the population that is either working or actively looking for work, improved to 61.5% last month from 61.4%. The so-called prime-age participation rate, or the participation rate among those ages 25-54, climbed as more women returned to the workforce. The report also showed the average workweek increased by 18 minutes to 34.9 hours, partly reflecting a bounce back from severe winter weather a month earlier. Unemployment rate declined for all races except Asian-AmericansJobless rate for Asian-Americans rose to 6% from 5.1%, reflecting both an increase in the number of people entering the labor force and more unemployed. Black unemployment rate fell to 9.6%, still the highest among races. Jobless rate among Hispanics fell to 7.9%; unemployment rate for Whites dropped to 5.4%.