The July jobs report issued Friday delivered mixed takeaways for the market, although it confirmed an overall healthy U.S. labor market.
On one hand, the pace of nonfarm payrolls growth fell short of forecasts in July, with 187,000 jobs gained compared to the expected 200,000. On the other hand, the jobless rate fell to 3.5%, exceeding expectations of 3.6%. Wages increased at a monthly pace of 0.4% and an annual rate of 4.4%, which was faster than expected.
