The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that 151,000 new non-farm payroll jobs — below economist estimates of 160,000 — were added to the labor market in February while the unemployment rate ticked back up to 4.1%. A month-over-month improvement from January's jobs report, moderated labor growth could be signaling some challenges still present in this steady economy.
Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi joins Morning Brief host Seana Smith to share his insights, describing the report as "mostly down the strike zone."
"I mean, 150K [is] kind of, sort of where average monthly job growth has been for a bit here," Zandi says, noting that the report reflects just "enough jobs to keep unemployment close to 4%" without sparking inflation worries.
Zandi also raises concerns about the potential risks that President Trump's tariffs pose to the US economy. "If we keep going down the trade war path, I do think we're going to see much weaker job numbers dead ahead," he believes.
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"What do I do with this? ... If something can be changed by the stroke of the pen, a business person is going to have a hard time making an investment decision based on that, or a hiring decision, or a layoff decision," Zandi says, expanding on the unpredictability that may pressure businesses in this environment.
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This post was written by Josh Lynch