The labor market added 253,000 payrolls in April, while the unemployment rate dipped to 3.4% — a historically low level.
Why it matters: Job growth continued to boom last month, the latest sign that the economy has strong momentum despite recent bank failures.
- Economists expected a gain of 185,000 jobs last month.
Details: The April job figures are a pickup from the 165,000 jobs added the previous month, which were revised down by 71,000, the Labor Department said on Friday.
- The Labor Department said that jobs growth in the previous two months was lower than first estimated: jobs growth was revised down by a combined 149,000 for February and March.
The big picture: In recent months, more Americans have joined the workforce, helping to ease labor force shortages.
- The labor force participation rate — or the share of workers employed or looking for work — held at 62.6% in April.
- Average hourly earnings, a measure of wage growth, rose to 0.5% in March. Wages rose 4.4% from the same time last year.
Where it stands: The Federal Reserve has been concerned about an out-of-balance labor market that it fears could stoke inflation that's already running high.
- But Fed chair Jerome Powell said this week that there were signs that the workforce was "coming back into better balance," though it remained "very tight."
Editor's note: This story was updated with a chart showing monthly job growth.
