WATCH LIVE:<\/strong> House Republicans ready to vote on Trump\u2019s \u2018big, beautiful\u2019 tax and spending bill after night of debate<\/a><\/p>\nThe U.S. job market has cooled considerably from red-hot days of 2021-2023 when the economy bounced back with unexpected strength from COVID-19 lockdowns and companies were desperate for workers. So far this year, employers have added an average 130,000 jobs a month, down from 168,000 in 2024 and an average 400,000 from 2021 through 2023.<\/p>\n
But the June numbers were surprisingly strong. State governments added 47,000 workers and healthcare companies 39,000. But manufacturers shed 7,000 jobs.<\/p>\n
Labor Department revisions added 16,000 jobs to April and June payrolls. The number of unemployed people fell by 222,000.<\/p>\n
Average hourly wages rose 0.2% from May and 3.7% from a year earlier, inching close to the 3.5% year-over-year number considered consistent with the Federal Reserve\u2019s 2% inflation target.<\/p>\n
Hiring decelerated after the Fed raised its benchmark interest rate 11 times in 2022 and 2023. But the economy did not collapse, defying widespread predictions that the higher borrowing costs would cause a recession. Companies kept hiring, just at a more modest pace.<\/p>\n
Employers are now contending with fallout from Trump\u2019s policies, especially his aggressive use of import taxes \u2013 tariffs.<\/p>\n
Mainstream economists say that tariffs raise prices for businesses and consumers alike and make the economy less efficient by reducing competition. They also invite retaliatory tariffs from other countries, hurting U.S. exporters.<\/p>\n
The erratic way that Trump has rolled out his tariffs \u2014 announcing and then suspending them, then coming up with new ones \u2014 has left businesses bewildered.<\/p>\n
Manufacturers responding to a survey released this week by the Institute for Supply Management complained that they and their customers were reluctant to make decisions until they understood where Trump\u2019s tariffs would end up. \u201cThat whiplash has to stop and it has to stay stopped,\u201d said Susan Spence, chair of the ISM\u2019s manufacturing survey committee.<\/p>\n
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