The great American jobs creation machine is firing on all cylinders, with February’s jobs figures showing far more strength than expected and both January and December being raised higher than previously reported.
The U.S. economy added 273,000 jobs in February and the unemployment rate ticked down to 3.5 percent, the government said Friday.
Economists had forecast 175,000 nonfarm payroll growth and the unemployment rate to tick down slightly to 3.5 percent from 3.6 percent the prior month.
Average hourly earnings were up by 3 percent compared with a year ago. The average workweek climbed a bit to 34.4 hours.
War with Iran Poised to Erupt Again After Weeks of Ceasefire If Peace Talks Fail
Car Enthusiast Jerry Seinfeld Blasts EVs: ‘It’s a Big, Stupid Virtue Signal’
Student charged after 5 stabbed at high school in violent altercation over vape pen
Activist remains perched atop DC bridge protesting Iran war, AI development: ‘The spirit moves me’
Abortion pill fight heads to Supreme Court as manufacturer warns of ‘chaos’ after ruling
Trump Talks ‘Taking Over’ Cuba ‘Almost Immediately… on the Way Back from Iran’
Bad Timing: California Gov. Gavin Newsom Ratchets Up Feud With Joe Rogan as Republicans Lead the Field to Replace Him
1 dead after car slams into lavish Portland social club with possible explosives, FBI investigating
Eric Swalwell, Man Who Quit Congress In Part Due to Improper Contact With Staffers on Snapchat, Still Contacting Staffers on Snapchat
Missing man’s body found in abandoned cemetery crypt in case tied to biker gang
Trump administration to close Potomac golf course for championship-level renovations
After Spirit Airlines Goes Bust, Remember How Biden, Warren Stopped Merger to Save Airline Because It’d Mean ‘Fewer Flights’
Trump troop cuts in Europe could be blocked by Congress — here’s how he might get around it
Democrat Arrested for Campaigning While High on Cocaine: Report
Communist and socialist groups call for ‘revolution’ and seizure of property at Minneapolis May Day rally
December’s estimate of payroll growth was revised upward by 37,000 to 184,000. January’s number was revised up by 48,000 to 273,000. That adds a total of 85,000 more jobs than had previously been reported putting the three-month moving average at 243,000 jobs
The labor market has been a bright spot for the American economy in recent months, with unemployment at or near 50-year lows and the economy continuing to add hundreds of thousands of jobs month after month. The strength of the labor market has boosted consumer sentiment and consumer spending, keeping the pace of economic growth stronger than in many of the other major economies around the world.
The coronavirus is widely expected to slow economic growth this year, although the impact may be short-lived if the outbreak is contained or fizzles out after a few months. The Labor Department said there was no sign that the outbreak had hurt employment in February. The strength of the labor market, however, may bolster the economy’s ability to withstand the pressure.
Story cited here.
