Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 5, 1991                   TAG: 9104050147
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: A-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: WASHINGTON                                LENGTH: Medium

JOBLESS CLAIMS AT 8-YEAR HIGH/ REPORT DEFLATES HOPES OF FAST RECOVERY

A private study, meanwhile, said a smaller percentage of jobless Americans received benefits in 1990 than during any other recession year since World War II.

The jobless-claims data from the Labor Department - showing applications topping a half-million for the third straight week - followed more favorable recent reports indicating rebounds in consumer spending and the housing industry.

"For those who might have been hoping for a quick end to the recession, I think that notion should be shattered," said Allen Sinai, chief economist at the Boston Co. "It can be a long time between the first signs of life and when the economy actually starts to recover."

The separate study showing that only 37 percent of the nation's jobless received unemployment benefits last year brought renewed calls for Bush administration action.

The study, based on Labor Department figures, was compiled by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal research organization that studies government social programs.

Thursday's report on jobless claims was seen as a dismal prelude to the overall unemployment report that will be released today showing the nation's jobless rate for March.

In advance of that report, many analysts estimated the unemployment rate had jumped from 6.5 percent to 6.7 percent and that businesses had cut as many as 200,000 more jobs. As of February, more than 1.6 million had lost their jobs since last June.

The jobless-claims report, though it can be erratic from week to week, has continued to show persistently high levels of new claimants. Analysts take that as a sign the recession continued in March despite other more positive reports, such as one showing that the government's chief economic forecasting gauge reversed course in February and surged upward by 1.1 percent.

Thursday's report showed that 543,000 people filed new claims for the week ending March 23. It was the third straight week that the number topped a half-million, a streak that had not happened in more than eight years.

It was a 33,000 increase over the previous week and the biggest one-week level since January 1983, the Labor Department said.

"The economy is in tough shape, especially on the jobs side. Lost jobs mean lost income and a loss in buying power," Sinai said.

The separate study on unemployment insurance said the 37 percent of jobless Americans receiving coverage last year was the lowest in a recession year since such figures were first compiled in 1946. "This low level of protection . . . is unparalleled," the report said.