WASHINGTON– The unemployment rate rose to 3.9% in February, compared to 3.7% in January, according to data from the Department of Labor. This is its highest level since January 2022.
In February, 275,000 jobs were created, more than in January, after the figure for the first month of 2024 was revised downwards, to 229,000 compared to the 353,000 initially announced.
December data had also been overestimated.
Analysts expected the creation of 198,000 jobs in February and an unemployment rate stabilized at 3.7%, according to the Market Watch consensus.
According to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Americans are “receiving solid wage increases that outpace inflation,” but “there is no evidence of inflationary pressure coming from the labor market.”
Joe Biden’s government in the midst of the electoral campaign affirms, with many doubts about that figure, that “15 million jobs have been created in three years, a record. And the unemployment rate is the lowest in 50 years,” he claimed.
Private sector job creation increased in February compared to January, but less than expected, according to the monthly ADP/Stanford Lab survey.
Given the difficulties they continue to encounter in recruiting and retaining employees, companies are cautious when it comes to shedding personnel.
At the end of January, there were 8.9 million unfilled jobs, a slight decline from December, according to data Wednesday from the Labor Department.
Source: AP.
