U.S. non-farm payrolls rise in July, jobless rate remains unchanged at 3.7 pct

U.S. non-farm payrolls rose came in line with expectations in the month of July. Employment rose by 164k, as compared with expectations of a rise of 165k. Hiring data for May and June were downwardly revised by 41k, modestly softening the recent trend in hiring.

Hiring in both goods and services decelerated. Goods-producing employment rose 15k, driven by an acceleration in manufacturing job gains. In the meantime, services employment rose 133k. Notable gains were seen in professional and technical services, health care, social assistance and financial activities.

The jobless rate stayed unchanged at 3.7 percent, against an expectation for a one tick drop, as participation in the labor force rose to 63 percent. This is the second consecutive month that headline participation rose, and is a good sign that a solid job market is drawing more people into the workforce, or keeping them there rather than retiring. Average hourly earnings rose 0.3 percent sequentially. That look the trend for growth over the past year back up to 3.2 percent.

In all, today’s report was a pretty decent one. Headline payrolls growth continues to decelerate on a trend basis, but that is not unexpected, said TD Economics in a research report. Either by a three or six-month moving average, trend hiring has eased from over 200k per month pace to 140k. This trend is expected to continue in the coming months, as spare workers get tougher to find added TD Economics.

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