The U.S. added 175,000 jobs in April, less than expected

The U.S. created 175,000 jobs outside the agriculture sector in April, fewer than analysts expected, according to payrolls data released by the Labor Department on Friday (3).

Analysts estimate that 243 thousand jobs will be created in the month, according to the LSEG consensus.

The largest job gains occurred in health care, social assistance, and transportation and storage.

The unemployment rate was 3.9%, up from 3.8% in the previous month and higher than the rate expected by analysts. As of August 2023, the unemployment rate is in a narrow range between 3.7% and 3.9%.

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Average hourly wages for all employees in nonfarm private payrolls rose 7 cents in April (+0.2% from March), to $34.75. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.9%.

Average hourly wages for private sector manufacturing and non-supervisory workers rose 6 cents (+0.2%) to $29.83 in April.

A downward revision to data released in February showed the number of job vacancies created rose from 270,000 to 236,000. But the March variance was revised upward to 315,000 from 303,000 vacancies. With these revisions, employment in February and March was 22,000 lower than previously reported.