Jobs Report Suggests Employers Are Nervous

The latest jobs report shows clear signs of a weakening labor market:

• Employers added a modest 73,000 jobs in July, below even Wall Street's consensus forecast of 100,000, reports CNBC.
• The unemployment rate rose to 4.2% from 4.1%.
• The May and June jobs numbers were lowered dramatically: June's figure, originally reported as a gain of 147,000, is down to a mere 14,000. May's number fell about 125,000 to 19,000.

• The slowdown is "a signal that pockets of weakness that had been marring the labor market are starting to take hold," per the Wall Street Journal. The story notes that the economy has shown "surprising resilience" amid much turbulence, though it appears that consumers, especially young consumers, are cutting back on spending. In short, "everyone is trying to understand what direction the economy is taking," says Jonathan Pingle of UBS.
• The New York Times sees the new data as a sign that "more businesses are putting expansion plans on hold as they deal with economic uncertainty." President Trump's new tariffs are the latest example.