unemployment rate at historic low (3.4%) – Corriere.it

Over the past month, 517,000 jobs were created in the United States (excluding agriculture). The Employment Report January is higher than both the data of the previous month and the estimates. In fact, analysts had forecast an increase of 187,000. The December figure, once revised, rose from 223 to 260 thousand (and that of November from 256 to 290 thousand). Unemployment falls from 3.5% to 3.4% (the lowest since 1969), contrary to the estimate of 3.6%.

Wages are growing

The state of our strong economy – said US President Joe Biden -. We’ve created 12 million jobs since I’ve been in the White House. Conversely, inflation is falling and this, as he recalls on Twitter, means that my economic plan is working. According to data provided by the US Department of Labor, average hourly wages increased by 10 cents, ithe percentage is 0.30%, for an overall average value of 33.03 dollars per hour. The increase compared to a year ago of 4.43%. The average working week increased by 0.3 hours to a total of 34.7. Labor force participation was 62.4%, up one percentage point from February 2020, before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The different sectors

In 2022 employment increased by 401,000 jobs. The hospitality and entertainment sector, the one most affected by the pandemic, grew by 128,000 units in the last month (in December, the average increase was 89,000 employees). To return to pre-Covid levels, therefore taking the February 2020 data as a reference, the sector should recover 495,000 jobs, 2.9%. In manufacturing, 19,000 new jobs were created, down from the average of 33,000 per month during 2022. The healthcare sector recorded 58,000 more units, up on the average of 47,000 per month of last year. Jobs in the government sector increased by 74,000, in the retail sector by 30,000 and in construction by 25,000. The number of people unemployed – for at least 27 weeks – remained unchanged at around 1.1 million. The US economy is in good shape, Biden reiterated at a press conference, adding that inflation continues to fall, while real wages are increasing. However, more work is needed to improve the US economy, with a focus on lowering costs for families.