June Unemployment Drops to 4-Year Low, 146,000 Job
Washington, DC, July 8--The unemployment rate in June dropped to a 4-year low of 5% from of 5.1 percent in May as the economy produced 146,000 new jobs, according to a report from the Labor Department.
Payroll numbers in both April and May were both revised up by a total of 44,000.
Economist had expected the unemployment rate to remain at 5.1% and job creations to come in at 194,000.
Economists had expected the jobless rate to remain at 5.1%.
Average hourly earnings rose 3 cents, or 0.2%, to $16.06 in June, as expected. Earnings are up 2.7% in the past year.
The average workweek was unchanged at 33.7 hours in June. The factory workweek was also unchanged at 40.4 hours. Total hours worked in the economy rose 0.2%.
Among 278 industries, 55% were hiring in June, down from 57% in May.
In June, the survey of some 400,000 business establishments indicated modest growth of 150,000 jobs in services, while goods-producing industries lost 4,000 jobs, including 24,000 in manufacturing.
It was the largest loss of factory jobs since January.
Factory employment has fallen by 96,000 since August. Job losses were concentrated in the auto sector, which lost 18,000 jobs. Among 84 manufacturing industries, 35.7% were hiring in June, the lowest since October 2003.
Construction firms added 18,000 jobs.
In the services, professional and business services added 56,000 jobs in June. Temp help jobs contributed 9,000 jobs.
Health-care added 25,000 jobs.
Retail added 2,000 jobs in June, while leisure and hospitality added 19,000 jobs. The figures are seasonally adjusted.
In a separate survey of 60,000 households, employment rose by 163,000, while unemployment fell by 161,000.
