Employers added just 187,000 jobs in July, slightly above the monthly average seen in the decade before the pandemic, according to new data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Economists were expecting a net gain of 200,000 jobs last month. June’s job growth was revised down to 185,000 jobs from 209,000.
July’s headline number and the downward revisions to the monthly job total for May and June
Further indications that the nation’s labor market is gradually cooling off. Moreover, it further fuels the notion that the Federal Reserve can achieve a “soft landing” of reining in inflation without massive layoffs.
Although the strong jobs data lands just days after the United States was downgraded by Fitch Rating for its fiscal health, Friday’s report is also the latest in the line of positive economic news that either kicks recession predictions further down the road or erases them entirely.
The July unemployment rate ticked down to 3.5%, from 3.6%. During the past 16 months, the jobless rate has hovered between 3.5% and 3.7% — levels not seen in more than 50 years.
There has to be sufficient growth to generate productivity gains, which are crucial for keeping inflation dow
The Fed is in the throes of a 16-month campaign to try to curb decades-high inflation by suppressing demand.
Economists were expecting to see a slight moderation in wage gains; however, those held steady for the second-consecutive month.