A Solid July Jobs Report Points Fed in the right Direction

The July jobs report was released today meeting expectations; 215,000 jobs were added and unemployment remained steady at 5.3 percent. The nonfarm payroll number that remained above the vital 200K mark is a respectable increase that was driven mainly by increased hiring in the retail and healthcare sectors. The 5.3 unemployment rate, while unchanged, is still an incredibly strong figure as it is the lowest level in over seven years and just 0.1 percent shy of the Fed's estimate of "full employment".

 The only negative news coming from the jobs report is the lackluster 62.6 percent labor force participation rate, a level unseen since the 1970s. Overall the July report is positive; a 215K payroll and 5.3 percent inflation are healthy figures that do not highlight issues about growth or cause the Fed to take any drastic measures. Numbers such as these do not definitively justify a September rate hike but they do point in the right direction, says Voya Global.