August Jobs Report: 162,000 Hires Mask a Quarter of Slow Hiring
Nonfarm payrolls rose 162,000 in August, the largest monthly gain since December, and the unemployment rate held at 4.1 percent . That is the headline from the August Employment Situation. The more honest number is the three-month average: 71,300 jobs a month from June through August, against 38,300 in the May-through-July window before it. One good month does not erase a soft quarter. It barely interrupts it.
Key takeaways: August nonfarm payrolls rose 162,000 and unemployment held at 4.1 percent, but the three-month hiring average is just 71,300. Initial claims fell to 196,000 and continuing claims to 1.73 million, so layoffs remain rare. Wage growth of 3.1 percent year over year keeps the…
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