Business: Stabilized
To President Eisenhower, the jobless total for March was a key figure. If the number of unemployed rose sharply, he had said, the Government would consider measures to stem the recession.
Last week the Census Bureau sent the President some heartening statistics. The March unemployment increase over February was only 54,000. It was the smallest rise in six months and less than 10% of the 584,000 increase in February. The bureau estimated the new total at 3,725,000, said that unemployment appeared to have "leveled off." Nevertheless, the March layoffs brought unemployment to its highest level since the same month in 1950, when the post-World War II top of 4,123,000 was reached. But with more than 60 million U.S. citizens on the job and with the usual spring upturn expected this month, the President and his advisers felt "encouraged," saw no present need for Government pump-priming.
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