The latest US jobs data for the month of August shows unemployment at its lowest level for nearly seven and a half years, but the rate of job
ADVERTISEMENTThe latest US jobs data for the month of August shows unemployment at its lowest level for nearly seven and a half years, but the rate of job creation appears to be slowing. Wall Street fell on opening.
The month saw the lowest gain in new jobs of 2015, while the manufacturing sector lost jobs at the fastest rate since July 2013.
Non-farm payrolls increased by 173,000, but it has to be underlined August statistics of this type are often revised up for a number of reasons, not least the smaller number of responses to summertime surveys.
What looks like slower job creation means that it is less likely the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this month.
Jobs gains, manufacturing and energy apart, were spread across almost every sector of the economy in August, although earnings growth remained weak.
However a slew of pay rises at some leading retailers allied to a tightening labour market and several state and local governments enacting minimum wage policies means pay looks to rise quicker.
The big hurters at the end of the week are the traders, with some nursing big losses after the sell-offs of recent days. The US economy, on the other hand, looks robust.
