Labour market: significant slowdown and unemployment growth in the US
August 2, 2024
Job growth in the United States in July was significantly slower than expected and the unemployment rate rose, the Labor Department reported Friday. Nonfarm payrolls rose by just 114,000, compared with a downwardly revised 179,000 in June and a Dow Jones estimate of 185,000. The unemployment rate rose to 4.3%, the highest since October 2021. Average hourly earnings, an inflation barometer that is closely watched, rose 0.2% in the month and 3.6% from a year earlier, both below forecasts of 0.3% and 3.7%, respectively.