The health of the US labor market deteriorated in July, with an increased unemployment rate by 4.2% (+0.1% in a month), according to official data published this Friday, August 1, showing a strong fall in the number of creations in recent months.
The world’s main economy created 73,000 jobs in July, less than expected by analysts, according to the monthly report of the Ministry of Labor. Above all, employment creations during the months of May and June were strongly reviewed down. The corrected figures (19,000 in May and 14,000 in June) are shown at the lowest from the Covid-19 pandemic.
The high interest rates tend to weigh on companies, while the Federal Reserve decided on Wednesday to keep them at 4.25% and 4.5%, despite the increasingly brutal calls of Donald Trump.
Increases in customs rights and immigration restrictions could also weigh on the labor market. Salaries also tend to stagnate.
The economy slows down
Specifically, although growth seems solid (3% in the second quarter in the annualized rhythm), some indicators suggest that the US economy slows down.
Consequently, US bond rates and the dollar clearly fell this Friday, while the market wonders about the repercussions of customs duties in US economic activity.
After starting at Green, around 2:50 pm in Paris, the US currency fell 1.13% compared to the euro, to $ 1,1546, and lost 0.65% compared to the British pound, to $ 1,3294.
This tendency to depreciation of the dollar compared to the euro is quite bad news for the European Union, since this increases the cost of exports to the United States, in addition to the increase in customs tasks.
Source: BFM TV
