In a closely watched announcement, the US unemployment rate for July 7th has been revealed to be 3.6%, aligning with earlier predictions. However, the number of jobs in the US fell by 206,000 in June, while the average hourly wage for workers increased by 0.4%.
At the time of the employment report’s release, Bitcoin remained relatively stable with modest fluctuations. Over the past 24 hours, Bitcoin traded around $30,200, experiencing a 1.3% decrease.
The US economy added 209,000 jobs in June, falling short of the estimated 224,000 jobs. This figure marks a significant decline from the total of 306,000 jobs added in May, making it the slowest month for job growth since December 2020.
The job growth rate would have been even lower without government intervention, which accounted for over 60,000 jobs at the state and local levels. Industries experiencing substantial growth included healthcare (41,000 jobs), social assistance (24,000 jobs), and construction (23,000 jobs). However, the entertainment and hotel sector only added 21,000 jobs during the month, indicating a significant slowdown for the industry over the past three months.
The retail sector lost 11,000 jobs in June, while transportation and warehousing saw a decrease of 7,000 jobs. Nonetheless, the average hourly wage for workers increased by 0.4% in June, surpassing predictions of 0.3% growth. Compared to the same period last year, hourly wages have risen by 4.4%. On an annual basis, wages have increased by 4.4% from the previous year.
According to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, as of the evening of July 7th, 94.9% of predictions suggest that the Federal Reserve (FED) will raise interest rates by 0.25%, while 5.1% predict that the FED will maintain the current interest rates in its upcoming late-July meeting.
The latest employment figures indicate a mixed outlook for the US economy. While the unemployment rate matched predictions, job growth slowed considerably in June. However, the increase in average hourly wages provides some positive news for American workers. The upcoming FED meeting will be closely monitored to gauge the central bank’s response to the economic situation, with the majority of predictions leaning towards a slight interest rate hike.
Source: https://azcoinnews.com/bitcoin-remains-at-30k-as-us-unemployment-rate-matches-predictions-and-stays-at-3-6-in-july.html
