The blue collar boom is here, producing job gains in manufacturing and construction.
The post Massive Jobs Blowout: U.S. Economy Added 162,000 Jobs in August appeared first on Breitbart.
The U.S. economy added 162,000 jobs in August and the unemployment rate held steady at 4.1 percent.
Economists had expected the economy to add 55,000 jobs and the unemployment rate to tick up to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent in July.
The previous month’s reported job loss was revised away. The July estimate was revised up by 44,000, from a loss of 23,000 to a gain of 21,000. The June gain was revised up by 11,000 to 31,000. After these revisions, employment in June and July combined is 55,000 higher than previously reported.
The private sector added 127,000 jobs in August, far more than the 53,000 expected. The prior month’s gain of 30,000 was revised up to 71,000.
Manufacturing payrolls rose by 16,000, above the 5,000 estimated. The July estimate was revised up from a gain of 5,000 to a gain of 14,000. Durable goods added 15,000 jobs in August after adding 24,000 in July and 13,000 in June.
Construction added 22,000 following an 18,000 gain in July. Construction has been increasingly in demand thanks to a data center building spree.
Leisure and hospitality unexpectedly added 62,000 jobs after contracting in July and June. Retail services added a slight 1,400 and wholesale added 7,800. Transportation and warehousing added 5,000 and utilities 2,500.
The information sector shed 23,000, perhaps an indication that artificial intelligence is displacing some workers in the sector. The finance sector lost 11,000 jobs.
Professional and business services added 10,000, including 6,800 in temporary help, an area of the economy considered a bellwether for the labor market.
The federal government’s payrolls contracted by 5,000, continuing an ongoing trend of government shrinking under President Donald Trump. State government jobs shrank by 10,000. Local public education payrolls expanded by 41,900 and other local government payrolls rose by 8,200.
Average hourly earnings rose 0.3 percent, a pace of wage gains considered consistent with the Federal Reserve’s two percent inflation goal. Compared with a year ago, average hourly earnings are up 3.1 percent, higher than the expected three percent. The average workweek rose to 34.4 hours, up from 34.3 hours, indicating workers had bigger paychecks in August than July. The increase in the hours worked was not forecast by any economists surveyed by Econoday.
The U.S. labor market has experienced a significant shift away from dependence on an immigration-driven workforce. Jobs numbers that may seem anemic compared with recent years may actually indicate healthy—even robust—growth under current conditions, according to economists.
Many economists now estimate the so-called “break-even” rate of job growth—the rate required to keep unemployment from rising—may be as low as zero. Others estimate that it may be from 10,000 to 55,000 jobs. As a result, some months are likely to see negative payroll changes even without increasing the level of joblessness in the U.S. By contrast, when immigration was running at higher levels from 2021 through 2024, the economy needed to add more than 100,000 jobs monthly to keep pace with labor-force growth.
Retirements are also driving down the growth of the labor force, as an increasing number of members of the large Baby Boom generation leave work and smaller generations fail to fully replace them.
This month’s report comes at a hinge moment for the Federal Reserve and markets. Investors are uncertain whether the Fed will lift interest rates when it meets later this month or keep them on hold. Weak jobs growth could convince the Fed to hold off on hikes, while strong growth would likely add to pressure on the Fed to raise rates to bring inflation down faster.
