U.S. Creates 213,000 in June; Wage Growth Slows

• U.S. Creates 213,000 in June; Wage Growth Slows

U.S. businesses created more jobs than expected in June while wage growth unexpectedly slowed.

According to the Labor Department, a total of 213,000 jobs were created in the month after an upwardly revised 244,000 jobs. The number is higher than the 195,000 jobs estimated by experts.

Average earnings per hour rose by 0.2 percent from the previous month, less than the 0.3 percent gain predicted by experts. The unemployment rate rose from the 3.8 percent record-low filed in May to 4 percent in June.

“This is a good job-creation number, but on the other hand we see still continued soft wage growth,” said Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co. “It’s positive in the sense that we still have some capacity to grow above trend without triggering too much inflation worry.”

At the same time, the latest report “probably places less pressure on the Fed to feel like they’re behind the curve,” Feroli said. “It’s probably relieving for the Fed.”

However, experts believe President Donald Trump’s tariffs levies on $34 billion Chinese goods may disrupt economic growth as companies may curb both hiring and investment, which could impact overall job figures in coming months.