The August jobs report delivered an unpleasant surprise, and a potential gift for housing ETFs.
U.S. nonfarm payrolls increased by just 22,000 last month, far below the 75,000 economists had expected and down sharply from July's 79,000. Revisions to prior months painted an even gloomier picture, with June data cut by 27,000 to reveal the first net job loss since the COVID-19 pandemic. The three-month average for job creation now sits at just 29,000, effectively signaling stagnation.
