However, the unemployment ticked up to 4.2%.
There was some good news Friday on the jobs front in an otherwise difficult week. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its nonfarm payroll or jobs report for March, showing strong gains.
Specifically, the U.S. added 228,000 new jobs in March, which far exceeded estimates of 140,000 and was significantly better than the 151,000 new jobs in February. It was also higher than the 158,000 average over the past 12 months.
The good news failed to move the needle much for stocks, however, as the impact and blowback from President Donald Trump’s tariffs are dominating investor sentiment. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down more than 1,000 points shortly after the opening bell, while the Nasdaq fell roughly 500 points, or 2.7%, and the S&P 500 dropped 140 points, or 2.5%.
This follows steep losses on Thursday that saw the Dow drop nearly 1,700 while the Nasdaq fell more than 1,000 points and the S&P 500 dropped 274 points.
Unemployment rate ticks up to 4.2%
The March jobs report saw the unemployment rate move up to 4.2%, from 4.1% the previous month. Economists had predicted unemployment to remain at 4.1%. The labor force participation rate stayed roughly the same at 62.5%.
The private sector added most of the jobs, about 209,000 of the 228,000. It was more than the 117,000 private sector jobs added in February and the 169,000 jobs that were added in March 2024.
Government added 19,000 jobs, up from 1,000 in February, but down from 77,000 in March of 2024. Within government, federal government employment declined by 4,000 in March, following a loss of 11,000 jobs in February.
Government jobs have been subject to massive layoffs stemming from the Department of Government Efficiency.
The Challenger Report cited 216,215 government job cuts in March, the most since September 2011.
Healthcare sector adds the most jobs
The biggest job gains occurred in the healthcare sector, which added 54,000 jobs in March, in line with the average monthly gain of 52,000 over the prior 12 months. Employment trended up in ambulatory health care services (+20,000), hospitals (+17,000), and nursing and residential care facilities (+17,000).
Further, employment in social assistance increased by 24,000, higher than the average monthly gain of 19,000 over the prior 12 months. Individual and family services added 22,000 jobs.
In addition, retail trade added 24,000 jobs in March, as workers returning from a strike contributed to the gains. Food and beverage retailers added 21,000 jobs while general merchandise retailers lost 5,000.
Further, transportation and warehousing jobs rose by 23,000 in March, about twice the prior 12-month average gain of 12,000. Job gains in couriers and messengers (+16,000) and truck transportation (+10,000) were partially offset by a job loss in warehousing and storage (-9,000).
Employment in other industries, including mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; construction; manufacturing; wholesale trade; information; financial activities; professional and business services; leisure and hospitality; and other services, showed little change.
Finally, average hourly earnings on private nonfarm payrolls rose by 9 cents, or 0.3%, to $36.00. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.8%. Average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees edged up by 5 cents, or 0.2%, to $30.96. The average workweek for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls was unchanged at 34.2 hours.
