BY: MARSHALL BARTLETT
Senior Vice President / Portfolio Manager
Announced this morning, the economy added just 75,000 jobs in May, much lower than the 175k estimate. The construction category was little changed in the month, while the professional & business services and health care categories showed job increases. The unemployment rate held steady at 3.6%, as expected and Average Hourly Earnings increased 0.2% in May and 3.1% on an annual basis, both slightly lower than forecasts. Overall, a weak headline jobs figure, which highlights the difficulties markets experienced over the past month and the uncertainty created by ongoing trade negotiations. Even so, the unemployment rate remains at levels not seen since the 1970’s. Should weakness in the labor market continue, it may cause the Federal Reserve to consider changes to their interest rate policy. Following the report, bond yields and the U.S. dollar moved lower; while equity futures remain positive heading into the market open.
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