U.S. job gains moderated in June while wage growth remained firm, showing a strong enough labor market to keep the Federal Reserve on track to raise interest rates this month.
Nonfarm payrolls increased 209,000 — the smallest advance since the end of 2020 — after downward revisions in the prior two months, a Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed Friday. The unemployment rate fell to 3.6%.
The latest figures suggest the labor market is losing some steam as high interest rates and months of sluggish consumer spending feed into concerns about the economy’s prospects. Yet with sufficiently healthy job growth and brisk wage gains, the Fed is likely to resume its series of rate hikes at its meeting later this month, following a pause in June.
