CNBC Economy

"The unprecedented magnitude of the decline in employment and production, and its broad reach across the entire economy, warrants the designation of this episode as a recession," the NBER said.

Nonfarm payrolls in May were expected to decrease by 8.333 million while the unemployment rate was seen rising to 19.5%, according to economists surveyed by Dow Jones.

CNBC studied the net change in employment by industry for May based on data from the Labor Department.

Personal income increased 10.5% in April, the Bureau of Economic Analysis said last week.

About 8 million Americans lost their jobs in May, on top of the 20.5 million in April, and economists see unemployment peaking near 20%.

U.S. productivity fell at a 0.9% rate in the first three months of this year, a smaller decline than first estimated, while labor costs rose at a slightly faster pace.

First-time claims for unemployment insurance were expected to total 1.775 million last week, according to economists surveyed by Dow Jones.

Finding good news in the loss of another 3 million jobs isn't easy, but the steep drop in private payrolls for May could be a sign that the worst over.

The reported total was well below the 8.75 million estimate from economists surveyed by Dow Jones. The reason for the wide disparity was not immediately clear.

The GDPNow outlook is now showing a 52.8% tumble, following data that manufacturing remains firmly in decline and will weigh on investment and consumption.

Visa's total U.S. payments volume fell at a much slower pace in May from the previous month, indicating that consumer spending was picking up as the government starts to ease coronavirus-induced lockdowns.

U.S. manufacturing activity eased off an 11-year low in May, though the recovery from the Covid-19 crisis could take years because of high unemployment.

It's not as if the coronavirus pandemic has gone away, but after a sharp pullback, homebuyers are now piling back into the housing market much faster than expected.

Consumer confidence unexpectedly improved in May as the U.S. economy slowly restarted, according to data from the Conference Board.

The unemployment rate is at its highest since the Great Depression. The current situation differs from that of the early 20th century in a few ways that may prevent the U.S. from entering another depression.

In perhaps one of the brightest economic readings since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, sales of newly built homes rose nearly 1% in April compared with March, according to the U.S. Census. While that may not seem like a lot, they were expected to fall 22%.

Home prices were still gaining steam in March, as the country began shutting down in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.

So far, state reopenings have not helped stem the rise in unemployment, which is expected to show another big jump in the month of May.

House Democrats passed a bill last week to extend the enhanced $600 per week unemployment benefit through January.

States across the country began reopening parts of their economies as early as April 24. Guidelines for reopening differ widely but a key difference lies in which sector can open first and the speed of the process. However, experts warn that a preemptive reopening can do more harm than good by potentially creating a second wave of infections, which would lead to more closures and increased economic hardship.