US Job Market Adds 147,000 Amid Tariff Worries/ Newslooks/ WASHINGTON/ J. Mansour/ Morning Edition/ The US added 147,000 jobs in June, defying forecasts of weaker growth amid policy uncertainty under President Trump. The unemployment rate dipped to 4.1%, showing surprising labor market resilience. However, businesses remain cautious due to Trump’s shifting tariff policies.
Quick Look
- US employers added 147,000 jobs in June.
- Unemployment fell to 4.1%, beating expectations.
- Trump’s tariff uncertainty weighs on business decisions.
- Manufacturing lost 7,000 jobs amid trade worries.
- Wage growth edged up 3.7% year over year.
- Fed rate hikes slowed hiring, but no recession hit.
- Businesses call for stability in trade policy.
- Economy shows resilience despite ongoing policy shifts.
US Employers Add 147,000 Jobs in June, Defying Economic Uncertainty
Deep Look
WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added a better-than-expected 147,000 jobs in June, signaling that the American labor market remains resilient despite uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump’s economic policies, according to government data released Thursday.
The Labor Department said the unemployment rate dipped to 4.1% from 4.2% in May. June’s hiring exceeded economists’ forecasts, which had anticipated fewer than 118,000 new jobs and a potential uptick in unemployment.
While hiring has cooled significantly from the hiring boom of 2021-2023, the June gains marked a modest rebound from May’s revised figure of 144,000 jobs. So far in 2025, monthly job growth has averaged 130,000, down from 168,000 in 2024 and well below the average 400,000 during the immediate post-pandemic recovery years.
State governments added 47,000 jobs in June, while healthcare providers hired 39,000 workers. However, manufacturers shed 7,000 jobs, reflecting strains in the industrial sector. Revisions to previous months’ data added a total of 16,000 jobs to the April and June figures.
Average hourly earnings rose 0.2% in June and were up 3.7% from a year earlier, close to the 3.5% annual pace considered consistent with the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation goal.
The job market slowed after the Federal Reserve raised interest rates 11 times between 2022 and 2023 to curb inflation. Yet the economy avoided the recession many economists feared, and hiring continued, albeit at a more moderate pace.
Business leaders remain uneasy about Trump’s trade policies, particularly his unpredictable imposition of tariffs. Economists warn that tariffs drive up costs for both businesses and consumers, disrupt supply chains, and invite retaliatory measures from trading partners, creating uncertainty for exporters and manufacturers.
The whiplash effect of Trump’s tariff announcements — some imposed, some delayed, others revised — has left companies wary of making long-term decisions.
“That whiplash has to stop and it has to stay stopped,” said Susan Spence, chair of the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing survey committee, noting growing hesitation among manufacturers and their customers.
Despite the headwinds, the latest jobs report suggests that the labor market retains underlying strength as policymakers and businesses navigate a shifting economic landscape.
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