Key Economic Indicators – August 5, 2019

  • Total non-farm payroll employment rose by 164 thousand in July, following an increase of 193 thousand in the previous month, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Private-sector payrolls increased by 148 thousand in July, while government employment increased by 16 thousand. Notable job gains occurred in professional and technical services, health care, social assistance, and financial activities.
  • The unemployment rate held steady at 3.9% in July. The unemployment rate was 3.9% in July 2018.
  • The number of unemployed increased by 88 thousand to 6.063 million. The number of long-term unemployed (those jobless for 27 weeks or more) decreased by 248 thousand to 1.166 million and accounted for 19.2% of the unemployed.
  • The labor force participation rate increased by 0.1 percentage point to 63.0% in July.
  • The average workweek of all employees on private nonfarm payrolls decreased by 0.1 hours to 34.3 hours.
  • In July, average hourly earnings of all employees on private nonfarm payrolls increased by 8 cents to $27.98. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings were up 3.2%.
  • The Federal Open Market Committee decided to lower the target range for the federal funds rate by 25  basis points to 2% to 2,25%.

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