The U.S. economy reportedly created more jobs in February than expected, rebounding after the impact of the Covid-19 variant contagion wave.
The Department of Labor reported a total of 678,000 number of government jobs were added in February, nearly 70% higher than the projections of experts who are targeting just an increase of 400,000 jobs. The unemployment rate dropped to 3.8% from a reading of 4%.
However, wage growth was reported to have slowed, and this reduced pressure on the Federal Reserve to tighten monetary policy. Average hourly earnings growth grew slowly to 5.1% during the year, down from a reading of 5.5% recorded in January.
According to economist, Glassdoor Daniel Zhao report today provides assurance that the job market recovery remains strong. Zhao noted that the increase in employment was driven by increases in the professional and business services sectors, as well as in transportation and warehousing.
The figures are likely to strengthen expectations that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates later this month and also confirm a statement by Fed Chairman Jerome Powell who said that the U.S. labor market and the economy in general are strong enough.
