BALTIMORE – U.S. businesses shed 2.8 million jobs in May, significantly less than the 9.3 million job losses that were expected.
The payroll company ADP reported Wednesday that businesses have let go of a combined 22.6 million jobs since March, with the bulk of the layoffs occurring in April.
The virus forced employers to shutter offices, factories, gyms and schools, while demand for gasoline, clothing, airline tickets, hotel rooms and restaurant meals quickly vanished.
Barring a second wave of the outbreak and with some additional government support, Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said the COVID-19 recession appears to have only lasted three months. “It will be the shortest recession on record, but it will be among the