‘The sky is not falling’: US economy added 142,000 jobs in August | CNN Business

‘The sky is not falling’: US economy added 142,000 jobs in August

All eyes were on the US labor market, and the latest check-up shows its diagnosis was not as bleak as some feared: Job growth returned to solid form in August, and unemployment trended back down after a concerning jump.

Employers added an estimated 142,000 jobs last month, marking stronger growth than July’s worrisome low number — which was revised down from 114,000 to 89,000 — according to data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment rate dropped to 4.2% from 4.3%.

Economists were expecting a net gain of 160,000 jobs and for the unemployment rate to fall to 4.2%, according to FactSet consensus estimates.

With inflation pretty much tamed and moderating as expected, the Federal Reserve has turned its focus to the labor market (the other part of its dual mandate). Job growth has been slowing, but there were indications that the labor market was weakening under the weight of 23-year-high interest rates.

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“This just confirms that the employment market is weakening, but the sky is not falling,” Eugenio Alemán, chief economist at Raymond James, told CNN. “So, there is no rush for the Fed to make a desperate move [and make a half-point] rate cut, but I think they can go with a [quarter-point] cut.”

Rate cuts on the way ! HomeLoan rates have been coming down in the US & Here and the banksters haven't even announced anything yet Lol