April NFP = 266,000

The April jobs report is out. The U.S. economy created 266,000 jobs last month. Expectations were for one million.

The jobs number for February was revised higher by 68,000 and March was revised lower by 78,000. The unemployment rate went up 6.1%. Manufacturing lost 18,000 jobs. The labor force participation rate is now 61.7%. Average hourly earnings rose by 0.7%.

Many economists had been expecting an even higher number amid signs that the U.S. economy was roaring back to life.

There was more bad news: March’s originally estimated total of 916,000 was revised down to 770,000, though February saw an upward revision to 536,000 from 468,000.

The battered leisure and hospitality industry saw the biggest hiring gains, adding 331,000 workers though that still left the industry nearly 2.9 million shy of where it was before the pandemic.

The report comes amid robust growth that saw gross domestic product rise at a 6.4% annualized pace in the first quarter, and as many economists see a burst of 10% or more in the second quarter.

Posted by on May 7th, 2021 at 8:37 am


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