Job Report in US – Payroll employment rises by 223,000 in June; unemployment rate declines to 5.3%

Editor’s note: While the establishment survey says that payroll employment rose by 223,000 in June, the household survey indicates that the number on people employed dropped by 56 000. This kind of result is not unusual, but it tends to come near turning points. Next months and other indicators will tell us.

Total nonfarm payroll employment increased by 223,000 in June, and the unemployment rate declined to 5.3 percent. Job gains occurred in professional and business services, health care, retail trade, financial activities, and transportation and warehousing.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Average hourly earnings of private-sector workers was unchanged last month at $24.95. From a year earlier, wages were up 2%, about in line with wage gains for much of the current expansion.

Meanwhile, the share of Americans participating in the labor force fell to 62.6% in June from 62.9% in May. That rate was the lowest since 1977.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at Jobs Report: U.S. Payrolls Climb by 223,000 – WSJ.