IMF and Fed divergence on inflation, continuing COVID-19 concerns, another record high for job openings, higher than expected jobless claims, the uncertain impact on scrapping supplemental unemployment benefits, and fewer COVID-19 reports in Connecticut are among the top business news items this morning.
National
The International Monetary Fund has named rising inflation as a risk to the global economic recovery, saying this could be particularly concerning in the United States if monetary policies are tightened sooner than expected. At the Federal Reserve meeting in June, officials showed more concern about inflation but continued to hold the position that it is likely to be temporary.
COVID-19 also continues to raise concerns in the business community, with the secretary-general of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Mathias Cormann, warning that new outbreaks are still one of the top risks to global economic recovery. Cormann urged wealthier nations to support developing nations with vaccine programs to help stop the spread of variants and support sustained economic growth.
U.S. job openings rose to a record 9.2 million in May, the third consecutive record-setting figure. However, businesses are still encountering significant difficulties in filling available positions, a challenge compounded by record numbers of people quitting their jobs to pursue new opportunities.
Jobless claims increased to 373,000 last week, higher than the figure of 350,000 anticipated by Dow Jones economists. Continuing claims have fallen to 3.34 million, while the number of people on some sort of unemployment benefit dropped to 14.2 million.
Business trends
Labor economists are saying that it’s too early to gauge the impact on unemployment rates of withdrawing from a federal program providing a $300-a-week unemployment supplement. A poor jobs report in April spurred half of all states to withdraw from this program, which Republicans criticized as a disincentive for people to return to work.
Connecticut
Following a sustained decrease in COVID-19 deaths, Connecticut health officials will decrease its reports on the virus from once a day to once a week. More than 8,000 Connecticut residents have died since the start of the pandemic.
