Xinhua
17 Sep 2020, 11:29 GMT+10
WASHINGTON, Sept. 16 (Xinhua) -- About 60 percent of U.S. business closures since March are permanent, indicating the devastating fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a report released Wednesday by U.S. online review site Yelp.
"In the wake of COVID-19 cases increasing and local restrictions continuing to change in many states we're seeing both permanent and temporary closures rise across the nation, with 60 percent of those closed businesses not reopening," Yelp said in its latest Economic Average Report.
As of Aug. 31, 163,735 U.S. businesses on Yelp have closed due to the pandemic, up by 23 percent since July 10, and 97,966 businesses have permanently closed, it said.
The restaurant industry continues to be among the most impacted by the pandemic, with 32,109 restaurant closures, 61 percent of which are permanent, it said.
The report also showed that the states of Hawaii, California and Nevada saw the most total business closures and permanent closures across the country. They're also the three states with the highest unemployment rates.
While rising business closures would cast a shadow on fragile U.S. economic recovery, the U.S. administration and congressional lawmakers remain deadlocked over the next COVID-19 relief package.
U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said Wednesday that more fiscal support is likely to be needed to support economic recovery as numerous small businesses are struggling, and state and local governments are in dire financial situation.
"It will take a while to get back to the levels of economic activity and employment that prevailed at the beginning of this year, and it may take continued support from both monetary and fiscal policy to achieve that," Powell said.
Get a daily dose of North Carolina Daily news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to North Carolina Daily.
More InformationBRUSSELS, Belgium: Meta is holding firm on its controversial pay-or-consent model, a move that could lead to fresh antitrust charges...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Bitcoin surged to a new all-time high this week, buoyed by growing institutional interest and a wave of pro-crypto...
LONDON, U.K.: American consumers and businesses could soon face the highest overall tariff burden in more than a century, according...
SHENZHEN, China: As global chip competition intensifies, Huawei Technologies is exploring new markets in the Middle East and Southeast...
LONDON/NEW YORK CITY: American grocery bills may be headed higher as coffee and orange juice prices face upward pressure from new tariffs...
BATTLE CREEK, Michigan: In a major consolidation of iconic food brands, WK Kellogg has agreed to be acquired by the owner of Ferrero...