In a clear indication of a stagnating labor market, the US economy saw an addition of merely 22,000 jobs in August — which is less than one-third of the anticipated job growth.
In another disappointing month, the US economy recorded only 22,000 non-farm jobs, falling short of the forecast of 75,000 jobs, while the unemployment rate increased to 4.3 percent, as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Friday.
Over the last three months, the US economy has averaged a mere 8,000 new jobs per month, based on an analysis of BLS reports conducted by Yahoo Finance.
These troubling findings emerge at a time when President Donald Trump has resolutely intensified his tariffs, conducted mass layoffs of government employees, canceled government contracts, and enforced stricter immigration policies. Experts have long cautioned that such tariffs, mass firings, and immigration restrictions could hinder job growth, economic expansion, and elevate inflation, potentially resulting in a scenario known as stagflation, where recessionary and inflationary pressures coexist.
Nevertheless, the report indicated that the economy added 79,000 new jobs in July, an upward revision from the previously reported 73,000 jobs in last month’s report.
In July, the BLS jobs report starkly highlighted the US jobs crisis, revising May’s job additions down to 19,000 from 144,000 and June’s job additions down to 14,000 from an initial report of 147,000.
The dismal jobs reports are merely one aspect of the deteriorating economic indicators. Almost all warning signs are flashing in the United States.
In July, the most recent month for which data is available, core inflation surged by 3.1 percent year-on-year, marking the highest rate in six months.
Additionally, Mark Zandi, Chief Economist at Moody’s, has cautioned that one-third of American states are already experiencing recession. Moody’s has also increased the likelihood of a recession in the United States within the next 12 months to 49 percent.
