WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) has reported that U.S. employment growth totaled 177,000 jobs in April, which is above the estimated 133,000 figure projected by Dow Jones economists, according to CNBC. The media outlet reports that economists were predicting fewer domestic jobs to be created due to the Trump administration’s tariffs against U.S. trade partners including China.
Additionally, the BLS found that the unemployment rate for April has remained unchanged at 4.2 percent.
The BLS made some hefty downward revisions for the employment gains in February and March. The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for February was revised down by 15,000 (rom 117,000 to 102,000) and March was revised down by 43,000 (from 228,000 to 185,000). With these revisions, employment in February and March combined is 58,000 lower than previously reported.
The healthcare sector led the way in job creation in April with 51,000 jobs, including gains in hospitals (+22,000) and ambulatory healthcare services (+21,000). Transportation and warehousing added 29,000 jobs, with gains in warehousing and storage (+10,000), couriers and messengers (+8,000) and air transportation (+3,000).
The financial sector contributed 14,000 jobs last month. The industry has added 103,000 jobs overall since its trough in employment in April 2024. Employment in social assistance continued also its upward trend in April (+8,000) but at a slower pace than the average monthly gain of 20,000 over the previous 12 months, according to the BLS.
Meanwhile, the federal government lost 9,000 jobs in April and is down 26,000 total jobs since January. CNBC reported that the job losses could be attributed to efforts by the presidential administration and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to trim government payrolls.
There was little change in employment over the month in other major industries including mining, quarrying, and oil-and-gas extraction, construction, manufacturing, wholesale trade, retail trade, information, professional and business services and leisure and hospitality.