Initial unemployment claims continued to decline during the final week of March as the construction industry cut down on layoffs in many states, likely providing continued hope of an economic recovery to many Americans who are jobless and consolidating debt.

According to the U.S. Departmentof Labor’s latest Unemployment Insurance Weekly Claims Report released on Thursday, advance figures for initial unemployment claims for the week ending March 27 stood at 439,000, a decrease of 6,000 from the week prior. The decline was nearly half of the 11,000 decline in initial claims seen one week earlier.

Referencing the latest data available from one week earlier, the report also found that the insured unemployment rate continued to remain stable at 3.6 percent for the week ending March 20, as it has for much of 2010. Accordingly, the number of those using unemployment insurance during the week was found to be at 4.662 million, only 6,000 less than its figure one week earlier.

Additionally, while only two states (Oklahoma and Illinois) saw increases in the number of initial claims they saw during the week, nine states saw declines of more than 1,000 in initial claims. Led primarily by decreasing layoffs in the construction industry, California saw the largest drop in claims of 5,180. It was followed by Pennsylvania (which saw a decline of 3,677), North Carolina (-2,733) and New Jersey (-2,521).

Average interest rates for all long-term mortgages saw another week of increases to bring March to a close, further decreasing the savings many homeowners looking to consolidate debt by refinancing their loan may be able to receive.

According to the latest Zillow Mortgage Rate Ticker for the week ending March 30, the average interest rate for 30-year fixed mortgages shot up by 0.13 percentage points to hit 4.93 percent for the week. The increase followed up a smaller 0.02 percentage point increase from one week earlier.

Similarly, the average rates for 15-year FRMs increased as well, tacking on 0.07 percentage points to hit 4.26 percent for the week. One week earlier, the average rate had decreased slightly by 0.03 percentage points to hit 4.19 percent.

The only mortgage type to see its average rate decline for the week was 5-1 adjustable-rate mortgages, which plummeted 0.13 percentage points to hit 3.53 percent. The decline nearly erased the 0.14 percentage point increase seen in the rate one week earlier.

Despite the majority of rate increases, the total volume of mortgage requests increased by 7 percent compared to the prior week. Separating the applications out by their average type, 29 percent were for refinance loans while 69 percent were for purchase loans and 2 percent were for home equity loans.

Nearly 14,000 workers from approximately half the states in the union have been deemed eligible to apply for Trade Adjustment Assistance in order to help them learn the proper tools to regain employment in a local industry, consolidate debt, and earn more money.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, companies in 20 states across the country, from New York to California, will be able to send a total of 14,000 workers who may have had their hours cut to get TAA certifications. The TAA will help the workers become skilled in other fields so they can maintain an appropriate income.

Additionally, some workers who are TAA certified may also be able to qualify for job search and relocation allowances, as well as a Health Coverage Tax Credit.

"Through the Trade Adjustment Assistance program, the U.S. Department of Labor is taking aggressive steps to help displaced workers gain access to the types of job training and placement services that will lead them to permanent good jobs in local industries,” said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.

The eligibility for re-employment TAA certification requires the worker be at least 50-years old. Wages that are earned at a new place of employment that total less than $55.00 can also qualify for reimbursements from the program of half the difference between the old and new wage.

Following a week in which average interest rates for all mortgage types saw significant declines, undoubtedly delighting those attempting to consolidate debt by refinancing their home, rates either remained stagnant or increased drastically during the week ending March 19.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s latest Weekly Mortgage Applications survey released on Wednesday, the average interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages shot up by 0.1 percentage points to inch back over the 5 percent threshold as it settled at 5.01 percent. The increase completely erased the 0.1 percentage point decline one week earlier that had dropped the rate below 5 percent

Fifteen-year FRMs fared just as poorly, as their average interest rate tacked on 0.09 percentage points to hit 4.33 percent for the week. One week prior, the average rate had enjoyed a much more promising 0.07 percentage point decline.

The average rate for one-year ARMs easily had the best week of all the mortgage types as it remained unchanged at 6.75 percent for the week. It had dropped to that rate one week earlier, thanks to a rate decline of 0.05 percentage points over the course of the week.

Likely due to the rising rates, the volume of mortgage loan applications decreased by 4.2 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis over the course of the week, with refinance applications declining 7.1 percent in the same timeframe. The overall loan volume decline came after a 1.9 percent decline recorded by the MBA last week.

Unemployed Pennsylvania workers who find themselves consolidating debt and saving money as they search for a new job may be able to look no further than U.S. economic policy to see why they are in such a predicament.

According to a newly released survey from Keystone Research Center and theEconomic Policy Institute, the state of Pennsylvania has shed 95,700 jobs in same time since 2001 that the U.S. trade deficit with China has increased by 274 percent.

The report added that the deficit’s growth has been largely sparked by manipulation of the value of its currency to take advantage of the agreement between the two nations while also leading to U.S. products being sold at inflated prices in China, creating problems that impede the nation’s recovery form the economic downturn.

"We have allowed the Chinese government to game the system for far too long, with serious consequences for the U.S. economy," said Robert Scott, the report’s author and an EPI economist. "The Treasury Department should publicly declare China to be a currency manipulator, and the Congress should authorize tariffs of at least 25 percent if China doesn’t start playing by fair rules."

In order to take steps to rectify the trade deficit issue, the U.S. House Ways and Means Committee will hold a meeting this week to discuss the issue as lawmakers in the Senate discus legislation introduced last week to help lessen the deficit.

Vice President Joe Biden, Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, and IRS Commissioner Dough Shulman announced on Monday that, in news that will likely be music to the ears of those consolidating debt and short on cash, tax refunds so far this year have increased nearly 10 percent compared to last year’s figures.

Through March 12, IRS data has found the average tax refund for those who have filed to be $3,036, a $266 increase from one year ago. The politicians attributed the larger refunds to many tax incentives being put in place by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to help spur spending and improve the economy.

"The Recovery Act is a major factor behind these larger, record refunds. About half of all Americans haven’t filed their taxes yet, so we urge them to look carefully at these Recovery provisions," said Shulman. "Taxpayers should also remember that the fastest, best way to get their tax refund is by filing electronically with direct deposit."

Biden added that many middle-class families who may stand to benefit the most from the added tax incentives should consult government websites outlining the many ways that families or individuals can add to their refund.

According to IRS data, only half of Americans have received their refund so far this tax season, which will last until April 15.

While the recently implemented Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act may propose it will seek to improve the U.S economy by introducing incentives that will help expand the job market, some are wondering if it will only help consolidate the debt of some at the expense of others.

Passed by the Senate last week, the HIRE Act is an attempt to reward employers who hire workers who have been unemployed for longer than 60 days between February 3 and January 11, 2011 exempting them from each worker’s 6.2 percent payroll tax.

The HIRE Act also proposes a $1,000 tax credit for employers for each worker hired due to the act who remains at the position for one year.

However, John H. Bishop, a professor at the ILR School at Cornell University, claims the hiring bill will not do much to increase the overall workforce. Instead, he said the bill would simply promote filling the positions of newly vacated positions with workers who have been unemployed long enough to trigger the benefit. As a result, employment figures will not expand and instead simply remain stagnant as the unemployed essentially replace each other.

“One could say it’s particularly lucrative for high-turnover businesses such as restaurants. But, will businesses take the government tax credit as extra profit, use it to pay down debt or to expand total employment?,” Bishop added.