U.S. hiring takes big step back as businesses scramble for workers, raw materials
By Lucia Mutikani
Reuters
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. job growth unexpectedly slowed in April, likely curbed by shortages of workers and raw materials as rapidly improving public health and massive government aid fueled an economic boom.
The Labor Department s closely watched employment report on Friday, which showed a plunge in temporary help jobs - a harbinger for future hiring - as well as decreases in manufacturing, retail and courier services employment, sparked a heated debate about the generosity of unemployment benefits.
The enhanced jobless benefits, including a government-funded $300 weekly supplement, pay more than most minimum wage jobs. The benefits were extended until early September as part of a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 pandemic relief package approved in March. Montana and South Carolina are ending government-funded pandemic unemployment benefits for residents next month.
Appointment of Anthony Uhrick as Vice President Sales Americas at Neonode
STOCKHOLM, Sweden, May 4, 2021 /PRNewswire/ Neonode Inc. (NASDAQ: NEON), today announced the appointment of Anthony Uhrick as Vice President Sales AMER.
Mr. Uhrick is an industry veteran with over 20 years of experience in the touch screen industry developing business for early market leaders such as 3M Touch Systems, Planar, and Smart Technologies. His career has focused on emerging interactive technology with extensive experience in developing new markets, creating partner relationships, managing product promotion and launches, and sales channel development.
Mr. Uhrick holds a B.Sc. in Business Administration and Finance from California State University, Northridge and a M.Sc. in Environmental Science from Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, California.
ERIC KOLENICH
Richmond Times-Dispatch
At Deep Run High School in Henrico County, about half of the students in the senior class have applied to Virginia Tech. And half of those applicants have been wait-listed, a huge increase from last year, said Jamie L. Jackson, the schoolâs director of counseling.
Prestigious colleges across the country were flooded with more applications this year. Unsure of how many students will actually enroll, some universities have wait-listed thousands more applicants this year in hopes of meeting their enrollment targets.
Thatâs led to more high school students and their families nervously waiting as decision day approaches. For most universities, thatâs Saturday, the day colleges typically set as the deadline for accepted students to commit by sending a nonrefundable deposit.
Mall Traffic Surges as Incomes Rise and Americans Go on Shopping Spree
Shoppers returned to malls in droves in March, boosted by a sharp rise in personal income and a strong boost in consumer spending, reinforcing the view that a recovery in the pandemic-stricken retail sector is building steam.
Foot traffic at a sample of 50 malls in March was up 86 percent from the same month last year, according to mobile-device location data from analytics firm Placer.ai.
Ethan Chernofsky, VP of Marketing at Placer.ai, told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that, “we’re already seeing the signs of a clear retail recovery.”
Fiscal stimulus bolsters US economic growth in Q1, fastest GDP growth since 2003
The second-fastest gross domestic product growth since the third quarter of 2003, reported by the Commerce Department on Thursday, left output just 0.9% shy of its level at the end of 2019
Reuters | April 30, 2021 | Updated 12:19 IST
US economic growth accelerated in the first quarter as the government gave money to mostly lower-income households, fueling consumer spending and setting the course for what is expected to be the strongest performance this year in nearly four decades.
The government largesse also extended to businesses, especially in the high-contact services industry. The massive fiscal stimulus and easing anxiety over COVID-19, with all adult Americans now eligible for vaccination against the virus, have resulted in a faster economic rebound in the United States compared to its global rivals.