Job growth zoomed in March as payrolls jumped by 303,000 and unemployment dropped to 3.8%

Job
creation
in
March
easily
topped
expectations
in
a
sign
of
continued
acceleration
for
what
has
been
a
bustling
and
resilient
labor
market.

Nonfarm
payrolls
increased
303,000
for
the
month,
well
above
the
Dow
Jones
estimate
for
a
rise
of
200,000
and
higher
than
the
downwardly
revised
270,000
gain
in
February,
the
Labor
Department’s
Bureau
of
Labor
Statistics
reported
Friday.

The
unemployment
rate
edged
lower
to
3.8%,
as
expected,
even
though
the
labor
force
participation
rate
moved
higher
to
62.7%,
a
gain
of
0.2
percentage
point
from
February.
A
broader
measure
that
includes
discouraged
workers
and
those
holding
part-time
positions
for
economic
reasons
held
steady
at
7.3%.

In
the
key
average
hourly
earnings
measure,
wages
rose
0.3%
for
the
month
and
4.1%
from
a
year
ago,
both
in
line
with
Wall
Street
estimates.

Growth
came
from
many
of
the
usual
sectors
that
have
powered
gains
in
recent
months.
Health
care
led
with
72,000,
followed
by
government
(71,000),
leisure
and
hospitality
(49,000),
and
construction
(39,000).
Retail
trade
contributed
18,000
while
the “other
services”
category
added
16,000.

The
February
revision
was
just
5,000
lower
while
the
January
revision
brought
that
total
up
by
27,000
to
256,000,
still
well
below
the

initial
estimate
of
353,000.

“This
is
another
really
strong
report,”
said
Lauren
Goodwin,
economist
and
chief
market
strategist
at
New
York
Life
Investments. “This
report
and
the
February
report
showed
some
broadening
in
terms
of
job
creation,
which
is
a
very
good
sign.”

Despite
the
move
lower
in
the
broader
unemployment
level,
the
rate
for
Black
people
surged
to
6.4%,
a
gain
of
0.8
percentage
point,
tying
the
highest
level
since
August
2022.
Rates
for
Asians
and
Hispanics
both
fell
sharply
to
2.5%
and
4.5%,
respectively.

A
string
of
positive
gains
has
kept
unemployment
below
4%
since
January
2022,
though
there
have
been
some
signs
of
cracks.
For
instance
the
level
of
household
employment
had
grown
only
modestly
over
the
past
year,
while
temporary
employment
has
declined
sharply.

However,
the
household
survey,
which
is
used
to
calculate
the
unemployment
rate,
posted
an
even
more
robust
gain
in
March,
up
498,000,
more
than
absorbing
the
469,000
increase
in
the
civilian
labor
force
level.

Gains
tilted
heavily
to
part-time
workers
in
the
household
survey.
Full-time
workers
fell
by
6,000,
while
part-timers
increased
by
691,000.
Multiple
job
holders
rose
by
217,000,
to
5.2%
of
the
total
employment
level.

Markets
have
been
keeping
close
watch
over
the
employment
data
particularly
as
the
Federal
Reserve
weighs
its
next
moves
on
monetary
policy.
Stocks
have
tumbled
this
week
amid
concerns
that
a
strong
labor
market
and
resilient
economy
could
keep
the
central
bank
on
hold
for
longer
than
expected.

Stock
market
futures
rose
following
the
report
while
Treasury
yields
also
added
to
gains.

The
Fed
is
looking
to
guide
inflation
back
down
to
2%
annually,
a
goal
that
has
proven
elusive
even
as
the
rate
of
price
gains
has
decelerated
from
its
peak
in
mid-2022.
Most
measures
have
inflation
running
above
3%,
though
the
Fed’s
preferred
gauge
is
below
that
level.

Market
pricing
is
pointing
toward
the
first
interest
rate
cut
coming
in
June,
though
several
Fed
officials,
including
Chair
Jerome
Powell,
this
week
indicated
they
prefer
to
take
a
cautious
data-dependent
approach.
The
BLS
on
Wednesday
is
scheduled
to
release
its
consumer
price
index
reading
for
March.

Correction:
The
unemployment
rate
edged
lower
to
3.8%.
An
earlier
version
misstated
the
move.