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Here’s what the jobs for May 2024 look like – in a graph
Job growth in May was surprisingly strong, allaying lingering fears of a broader economic slowdown and likely slowing the Federal Reserve’s rate cut schedule.
The US economy added 272,000 jobs in the month, coming in significantly above the Dow Jones consensus estimate of 190,000. That’s also higher than the average monthly earnings of 232,000 over the past 12 months, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
In May, employment rose across several sectors, with healthcare leading again this month, followed by government and hospitality. The three sectors, respectively, created 68,000, 43,000 and 42,000 jobs, similar to trends observed last year. These sectors also accounted for more than half of the month’s total gains. The combined healthcare and social assistance space generated more than 83,000 jobs in May.
The professional, scientific and technical services sector was also a bright spot in May, creating 32,000 jobs during the month, which is much higher than the average monthly gain of 19,000 over the past 12 months.
On the other hand, social assistance employment trended higher as it added 15,000 jobs last month, below the sector average of 22,000 jobs per month seen over the past year. Meanwhile, job losses occurred at department stores and furniture and home furnishings retailers.
Other major industries – including oil and gas extraction, construction, manufacturing, information and financial activities – saw little or no change in employment over the month, according to the report.
Investors walked away from the report discouraged by the possibility of the Federal Reserve cutting rates in June, noting that rising job growth and above-average wage growth paint a picture of a fairly strong consumer outlook.
“As has been the case recently, job growth has been driven by non-cyclical areas such as healthcare and government, but cyclical areas such as leisure and hospitality have been strong… this will likely keep the Fed in a holding pattern , with the former the cut will likely only occur in September, assuming we continue to see lower inflation,” Sonu Varghese, global macro strategist at Carson Group, said on Friday.