The U.S. economy added 156,000 new jobs in August, falling short of the 170,000 or greater increase in non-farm jobs predicted by economists polled by MarketWatch and other news outlets. The unemployment rate edged up from 4.3 percent to 4.4 percent, according to the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics report. The hiring figures marked a slowdown from July, although the latest report cut the estimate of jobs created that month to 189,000 from 209,000. The June gain was reduced from 231,000 to 210,000. The August figures don't include any impact from Hurricane Harvey. Average wages increased by 3 cents to $26.39 an hour.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
The Mighty Five: a guide to Utah's mesmerizing national parksThe Week Recommends From Arches to Zion, you should wander them all
-
How is your mortgage rate determined?The Explainer The Federal Reserve is partly to blame, but so are various personal financial factors
-
The week's best photosIn Pictures A bicycle race, a destroyed building, and more
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homesSpeed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bidSpeed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
-
Disney and DeSantis reach detenteSpeed Read The Florida governor and Disney settle a yearslong litigation over control of the tourism district
-
Visa and Mastercard agree to lower swipe feesSpeed Read The companies will cap the fees they charge businesses when customers use their credit cards
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billionSpeed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
-
Feds cap credit card late fees at $8speed read The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule to save households an estimated $10 billion a year
