The US added 151,000 jobs in February, bringing unemployment rates to 4.1% in its first employment report covering President Trump's second term.
The monthly employment report released Friday by the Labor Bureau showed that it has steadily held the job market amid growing economic concerns and a collapse in consumer trust.
Most economists' forecasts for solid profits from 150,000 jobs, with a slightly higher unemployment rate in February. But experts were on guard for unexpectedly bad reports after weeks of economic data, massive federal layoffs and the impact of Trump's new tariffs.
The huge surge in corporate layoffs reported by employment company challenger Grey & Christmas has sparked even more concern Thursday.
Several economists noted that federal workers' losses have not yet been shown in labor data as a result of the Trump administration's personnel delivery.
“The federal layoffs we've heard about will begin to appear in next month's release,” writes Elizabeth Renter, economist at Nerdwallet, in the commentary.
Kevin Linz, a senior fellow and research advisor at the Washington Center for Equity Growth, agreed, writing that “it is difficult to identify the extent to which federal agencies and federal contract reductions have actually occurred so far.”
“The report is unlikely to have any impact on private sector employment,” he added.
The number of jobs in January was revised with 18,000 to 125,000 jobs added to the economy. The December number, which is often subject to seasonal employment factors, was revised with employment between 16,000 and 323,000.
The healthcare sector added 52,000 jobs, financial activities added 21,000 jobs, and transportation and warehouse added 18,000 jobs.
Economists' responses were generally mixed, with some focusing on strong pay numbers, while others detecting weaker unemployment rates.
“The robust salary expansion in February emphasizes that the negative impact of tariff hikes and policy uncertainty on economic activity at the macro level will not be felt for some time,” writes Brian Callton, chief economist at Fitch Ratings, in the commentary.
Joe Gaffoglio, CEO Mutual of America Capital Management, was even more pessimistic.
“The labour market shows signs of weakness with employment across the sector,” he writes. “The worsening degradation indicators such as employment intent, new job listings and temporary staffing suggest a potential slowdown in employment growth.”
Wages rose 0.3% a month to an average of $35.93 per hour. They have increased by 4% and 3.6% over the past three months.
The broader measure of unemployment, known as the U-6 rate, was driven by part-time workers and those who have a “slightly attached” to the workforce, bringing it to 8%, the highest level since 2021.
In the economy, several warning signs are flashing in the economy, including inflation, which saw a 3% increase in gross domestic product forecast from the Atlanta Fed, which showed negative growth in the first fiscal quarter of 2025.
Consumer sentiment also weakened, with some pullbacks in spending.
Updated at 9:24am on EST
