WASHINGTON (Fox News): The number of Americans applying for state unemployment benefits remained persistently high last week, indicating the pace of layoffs is still elevated as a resurgence in coronavirus cases threatens to derail the economy‘s recovery.

The latest jobless claims figures from the Labor Department, which cover the week ending Oct. 24, show that 751,000 workers sought aid last week, about four-times the pre-crisis level. More than 65 million Americans ‒ roughly 40% of the nation’s labor force ‒ have sought jobless aid since the coronavirus lockdowns began in mid-March.

Economists surveyed by Refinitiv expected 775,000 new claims.