The Labor Department reported Friday that U.S. employers added 164,000 non-farm jobs in July, just below the 171,000 jobs forecast by economists surveyed by MarketWatch, and in line with the expectations of those polled by Reuters. The gains marked a slowdown from June's surge, although that month's growth was revised down from 224,000 jobs to 193,000 jobs. The strong but lower gains were not expected to affect the rising likelihood that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates again in September to boost the economy, as President Trump's escalating trade war with China threatens to slow economic growth. The yearly pace of hourly wage gains edged up to 3.2 percent from 3.1 percent. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.7 percent, near a 50-year low.
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