US adds 4.8 million jobs as unemployment falls to 11.1% in June
THE official US unemployment rate for June dropped to 11.1 percent from a previous 13.3 percent, beating market expectations, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Thursday.
Some 4.8 million jobs were added in June, while the number of workers listed as being on temporary layoffs fell by 4.8 million to 10.6 million. Some two-fifths of the job gains came in the leisure and hospitality sectors.
The Bureau’s methodology means the figure largely reflects the first weeks of June. However, the country has since seen re-openings paused or even rolled back due to new spikes in coronavirus caseloads, threatening the recovery from the recession.
The figures came as the Department of Labor separately reported 1.42 million initial unemployment claims for the last week, a fall of just 55,000 on the previous week, signalling the economic rebound is still facing headwinds.
The figures mark the 15th straight week in which the US has posted more than 1 million new unemployment benefit claims, but remains far below the worst week in March, which saw more than 6 million claims.
The unemployment rate is still up by 7.6 percentage points since February, equalling some 12 million workers who are out of a job since the pandemic hit.
US President Donald Trump gloated, in brief remarks to reporters, saying the economy was “roaring back” and taking full credit for the gains.
“This is not just luck that is happening, this is a lot of talent,” Trump boasted, adding that the economy “is coming back faster and bigger and better than we ever thought possible.”
Trump downplayed concerns about the coronavirus resurging, saying public health experts would “continue to address the temporary hotspots.”
The president did not take questions in his White House appearance. The country confirmed a record 50,000 new cases in a single day this week, smashing records from the first months of the pandemic.
California, Texas and Florida, the three most populous states, are seeing some of the worst infection numbers this week.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics meanwhile noted a small decline in average hourly earnings last month, which it said was a result of lower-wage earners getting their jobs back.
The jobs recovery has likely been helped by federal government economic stimulus programmes, though expanded unemployment benefits are due to expire within weeks. Lawmakers and the White House say there are talks ongoing about whether to inject more stimulus.
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told reporters that there may be more direct cash payments and that there could be monetary infusions to schools to help with getting pupils back into class, as part of a future stimulus bill.
US stock markets opened higher, in part of the jobs report, with the S&P 500 up about 1.3 per cent on the last trading day of the week ahead of the long holiday weekend.