It’s a good sign that the labor market is holding up despite rising inflation caused by energy costs sparked by the Iran war.
Confirming the trend shown by Challenger, The Jolts report and the ADP private sector payroll report, the BLS also reported its April jobs report with better than estimated gains. With a gain of 115,000 jobs, which beat estimates handily, the Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed that at least for the early part of 2026, job losses seemed to have slowed down and gained in some sectors of the economy. A good sign, and a sigh of relief with all the angst and anxiety from AI taking away tech employment.
Payrolls rose by 115,000 jobs, beating estimates of 55,000 by over 100%, the strongest 2 month back to back gains since 2024. There were a few revisions as usual but net of revisions it showed the job market gaining over 50,000 per month this year, with the two month average exceeding 150,000.
The unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.3%, however the participation continued to trend down to a low of 61.8%.
It’s a good sign that the labor market is holding up despite rising inflation caused by energy costs sparked by the Iran war. I would also give credit to the supreme court’s decision to strike the tariffs, which has reduced uncertainty and costs for employers and businesses.
Where were the jobs - Health care and education, echoing Wednesday’s payroll report, led gains in this report as well, followed by transportation, warehouse and retail, with an assist from couriers and messenger services.
Fitch ratings heat Olu, Sonola, had this to say:
After nearly a year of choppy hiring, back-to-back 100K-plus payroll gains are genuinely good news, the labor market is not booming, but it is proving harder to break than many feared.
Diane Swonk, chief economist at KPMG of was more circumspect:
It’s still a high-anxiety job market,. Those who have a job are clearly clinging on, while those looking for a job are feeling frozen out.
