Job creation in March easily topped expectations in a sign of continued acceleration for what has been a bustling and resilient labor market.
Nonfarm payrolls increased 303,000 for the month, well above the Dow Jones estimate for an increase of 200,000 and higher than the downwardly revised 270,000 gain in February, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.
The unemployment rate edged lower to 3.8%, as expected, even though the labor force participation rate moved higher to 62.7%, a gain of 0.2 percentage point from February.
In the key average hourly earnings measure, wages rose 0.3% for the month and 4.1% from a year ago, both in line with Wall Street estimates.
Job growth came from many of the usual sectors that have powered gains in recent months.
Health care led with 72,000, followed by government (71,000), leisure and hospitality (49,000) and construction (39,000). Retail trade contributed 18,000 while the “other services” category added 16,000.
Markets have been keeping close watch over the employment data particularly as the Federal Reserve weighs its next moves on monetary policy.
Stocks have tumbled this week amid concerns that a strong labor market and resilient economy could keep the central bank on hold for longer than expected.
Stock market futures were around the flatline following the report while Treasury yields posted gains.
.Here are the top political news stories for today.
@BoredPl4tformDemocrat2yrs2Y
Zero bad news in this week's jobs report:
— Unemployment below 4% for the longest time in generations
— Job growth is continuing
— Wages are rising faster than prices
But that means it's time to listen to Keynes, and cut the deficit.
A Depression unlike anything we have ever seen is coming. Don't read Keynes, read Mises. Unless we abolish the Fed and return to the Gold Standard, end the fascistic fusion of government and banking, all hell will break loose. It's inevitable.
@ViperTaylorRepublican2yrs2Y
Freeze all non defense and infrastructure spending for 3 years. Permitting reform, repeal some dumb laws (jones act, foreign dredge act, NEPA) move non corporate tax rates to where they were under Obama and let GDP growth handle it.
@UnityPloverLibertarian2yrs2Y
Time to put the US economy on Ozempic.
@DrearyInt3grityMountain2yrs2Y
Your party is importing voters to sway elections. Millions of them… Not a single other topic matters, our nation isn’t an “economic zone”… it’s a country.
God, what history will write about how this gets corrected will make the Reconquista look like a birthday party
@L3ftyOwlLibertarian2yrs2Y
March Full-time jobs: -6000
March Part-time jobs: +691,000
@SereneRatVeteran2yrs2Y
Jobs for every illegal right off the bus
Biden’s America doesn’t disappoint
More of the same: more part-time McJobs that one cannot build a prosperous future with
@CakeJonnyPatriot2yrs2Y
Correct. From Nov to March, the US lost 1.8 million full-time jobs
In the last 12 months, the US labor market has seen a 1.9M increase in part-time jobs while the full-time jobs count declined by 1.3M
Headlines: US been adding jobs for 39 straight mths
And the economy just keeps adding jobs. 303K in March. Unemployment rate down a tick to 3.8%. Labor force participation up. Hours up. Overall strong report across the board.
At the same time rapid wage growth, but might be overstated.
@EnviousDirectNo Labels2yrs2Y
The economy has generally been adding jobs at a 300K/month clip for several years now. At the same time the unemployment rate has been flat (or even a little up over the last year).
Suggests this could be the steady-state pace of job growth, due to rapid immigration.
@AloofPragmaticDemocrat2yrs2Y
The much stronger monthly job creation of 303,000 is not the only the big upside surprise in today’s jobs report. Labor force participation rose from 62.5% to 62.7%, consistent with the favorable domestic supply side influence that has fueled the current phase of US economic exceptionalism relative to most other advanced countries.
Education/Health and Government jobs accounted for more than half of all job gains.
@TealJerryVeteran2yrs2Y
Everything eventually moves closer to the printing press.
As the federal government continues to destroy the private sector and hire
all the remnants, I wonder if people will realize they don’t actually produce anything… and soon enough there won’t be any producers left to tax.
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
@ISIDEWITH2yrs2Y
absolutely pathetic and should scare the market. Gee I wonder why our defecit is 2tn and we add 1tn of debt every 90 days - it couldnt be because of the growing cancer tumor of goverment?
@WorriedElandDemocrat2yrs2Y
Overall this is an excellent report. It adds a very tiny bit to inflation concerns but only a very tiny bit. But most importantly it provides no reason for the Fed to cut rates any time soon. This does not look like a macroeconomy with any worrying cracks or lack of momentum.
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