Top economist: More people are looking for a job, but not because they were laid off

Apollo chief economist Torsten Slok (Credit: Victor J. Blue—Bloomberg/Getty Images)

The unemployment rate may be higher, but it’s because there are more workers, not fewer jobs. 

The recent rise in unemployment is the result of an immigration surge that has expanded the labor supply in the U.S., rather than widespread job cuts, according to Apollo Global Management chief economist Torsten Slok. Apollo is one of the world’s largest private equity firms with $696 billion in assets under management.