A sign is seen at a job fair at Brunswick Community College in Bolivia, North Carolina, United States, Thursday, April 11, 2024.
Alison Joyce | Bloomberg | Getty Images
The U.S. economy added fewer jobs than expected in April and the unemployment rate rose, reversing a trend of strong job growth after the Federal Reserve remained cautious as it looked for signals on when to start cutting interest rates.
Nonfarm payrolls rose by 175,000 this month, below the Dow Jones consensus forecast of 240,000. The unemployment rate rose slightly to 3.9% and is expected to remain stable at 3.8%.
Average hourly earnings increased by 0.2% from the previous quarter and by 3.9% annually, both lower than consensus market expectations and an encouraging sign of inflation.
The unemployment rate reached its highest level since January 2022. level.
Consistent with recent trends, health care led job creation, adding 56,000 positions.
Other industries showing significant growth include social assistance (31,000), transportation and warehousing (22,000), and retail (20,000). Construction added 9,000 jobs, while government jobs, which have been strong in recent months, added just 8,000 compared with an average of 55,000 over the past 12 months.
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