WASHINGTON, D.C. — Nonfarm employment in the United States rose by 311,000 jobs in February, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This number marks a slowdown from January, in which 504,000 jobs were added to the economy, but surpassed expectations from Dow Jones economists who estimated that the economy would add 225,000 jobs in February, according to CNBC. (The January jobs total was revised down by 13,000 jobs, from 517,000 to 504,000.)
The unemployment rate also experienced a slight elevation in February, reaching 3.6 percent, a 20-basis-point increase. Long-term joblessness accounted for 17.6 percent of overall unemployment, remaining relatively unchanged from previous months.
Leisure and hospitality, retail, government and healthcare experienced notable job gains. Leisure and hospitality — though still below its pre-pandemic level of employment by 2.4 percent — added 105,000 jobs. Retail and government added 50,000 and 46,000 jobs, respectively.
Declines in employment were observed in the information and transportation and warehousing industries, which saw a collective loss of 47,000 jobs.
Carlos Vaz of CONTI Capital projects that the strong jobs reports thus far in 2023 may portend further interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve.
“Despite the decrease in job growth from the previous month, the current level of growth suggests that the Fed will implement at least three more 25-basis-point hikes,” says Vaz. “If interest rates do reach the 5.25 to 5.5 percent range, it may tighten financial conditions. However, the labor market and U.S. consumers’ strength suggest that any recession will likely be short-lived and shallow.”