US job growth missed expectations in July, government data showed Friday, while revisions to hiring figures in recent months brought them to the weakest levels since the Covid-19 pandemic.
The employment numbers appear to signal risks in the key labor market in the world’s biggest economy, as companies grapple with President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs.
The world’s biggest economy added 73,000 jobs last month, while hiring numbers were revised significantly lower for May and June, the Labor Department said.
The jobless rate nudged up from 4.1 percent to 4.2 percent.
Experts have warned that private sector firms appear to be in a wait-and-see mode due to heightened uncertainty over Trump’s rapidly changing trade policy.
With tariff levels climbing since the start of the year, both on imports from various countries and on sector-specific products such as steel, aluminum and autos, many firms have faced higher business costs — which some are now passing along.
On Friday, the Department of Labor said hiring numbers for May were revised down from 144,000 to 19,000. The figure for June was shifted from 147,000 to 14,000.
This was lower than job creation levels in recent years. During the pandemic, the economy lost jobs.
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© Agence France-Presse
