Job Market Bounced Back In February

The job market bounced back slightly in February after a lackluster January, staying resilient in the face of headwinds from tariff talk and federal job cuts but falling short of expectations.

U.S. employers added 151,000 jobs in February, up from a revised 125,000 in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday. That was below economists’ median forecast of 170,000, according to a survey by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

Job growth was slightly below the average of 164,000 added each month over the previous 12 months, and a distinct slowdown from the roaring job market of 2023, when monthly job creation averaged more than 200,000. The unemployment rate edged up to 4.1% from 4% in January but stayed relatively low by historical standards.

The job market has slowed down from its post-pandemic surge but has stayed resilient despite high interest rates by the Federal Reserve pushing up borrowing costs on all kinds of loans and generally throwing sand in the economy’s gears in an effort to combat high inflation.

President Donald Trump’s economic policies have stoked fresh fears about a possible downturn, namely the mass layoffs of federal workers and the uncertainty created by on-again, off-again threats of tariffs.