Today the focus is on nonfarm payroll, an indicator generally published on the first Friday of each month by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. The US May jobs report is being closely watched to monitor any effects of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike on the labor market.
Recent statements from Fed officials seems to reinforce their more aggressive stance to fight inflation. On Thursday, Fed Vice Chair Lael Brainard said in an interview on CNBC that a September pause in their tightening cycle is currently very unlikely. During the Philadelphia Council for Business Econoimcs, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester stated that, in her opinion, rates should rise above neutral level.
The ADP Report showed that US private sector employment only increased by 128K in May 2022, well below the 300K forecast and the lowest since job losses in 2020. The ADP Employment data for April 2022 was also revised down to 202K from 247K.
According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Nonfarm payroll rose 390K in May 2022, from 436K in April and better than market forecasts of 325K. The US unemployment rate stayed unchanged at 3.6% in May 2022, slightly higher than the forecast of 3.5%.
Stock futures fell after a better-than-expected employment report.