Summary:
January saw nonfarm payrolls grow by 353,000, surpassing Dow Jones' estimate of 185,000. Unemployment remained at 3.7%, beating the 3.8% estimate.
NFP (changes in non-farm payroll)
8/3/2024 (Fri)
Previous (Jan)：353k Forecast: 200k
Nonfarm payrolls expanded by 353,000 for January, much better than the Dow Jones estimate for 185,000. The unemployment rate held at 3.7%, against the estimate for 3.8%.
The report demonstrated the resilience of the US economy after some high-profile layoffs recently have raised questions about the durability of what has been a powerful trend in hiring.
One potentially important caveat in the report could be the divergence between average hourly earnings and hours worked, indicating employers chose to reduce hours rather than resort to layoffs.
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