The unemployment rate remained at 3.8% while the latest unemployment benefits claims at 202,000 were the lowest since 1969.
Some cracks in the jobs picture: Manufacturing job growth has stalled due to the impact of tariffs. Meanwhile, the number of retail jobs has fallen for three straight months.
Weekly earnings growth varies by industry: Information (7.0%), utilities (3.9%), finance (3.9%), leisure and hospitality (3.7%), professional and business services (3.6%), and construction (3.6%) all saw strong, above-average earnings growth, while transportation and warehousing (1.3%) and manufacturing (1.3%) are rising more slowly.
Job gains were focused in four industries accounting for almost 65% of all job growth:
- Health care (+49,100),
- Professional and technical services (+34,100),
- Bars and restaurants (+27,300), and
- Construction (+16,000).
GDP forecasts rebounding: First quarter growth forecasts have been rising with new data, leading some economists to expect growth to be more than 2%.
Looking ahead: The majority of business economists see external headwinds from trade policy and slower global growth as the primary downside risks to growth. However, they put the odds of a recession starting in 2019 at just 20%, and the odds of a recession by the end of 2020 at just 35%, while projecting payroll job growth in 2019 to average 173,000.
