The U.S. job creating engine remained revved up with the U.S. adding 295,000 net new jobs in February 2015. In the latest 12 months, the country added 3.296 million net new jobs, the most in any 12-month period since April 1998 on a seasonally-adjusted annualized rate (SAAR).
The following table shows the year-over-year comparison of the total number of net new jobs on a SAAR comparing 2014 and 2015.
Other details in the Bureau of Labor Statistics release included:
- The past 12 months has seen an average 274,700 new job creations each month.
- Food services and drinking places added 59,000 jobs in February and has averaged 35,000 new jobs per month in the prior 12 months.
- Construction employment rose by 29,000 in February with a total 321,000 new added in the past 12 months.
- There were 24,000 jobs created in healthcare which has averaged 29,000 new jobs per month in the past 12 months.
- Retail traded created 32,000 new jobs in February totaling 319,000 in the past 12 months.
- While averaging 14,000 new jobs per month in the prior year, transportation and warehousing added 19,000 new positions in February.
- Mining, which includes oil and gas, declined by 9,000 in February. 7,000 of the job losses were support activities for mining.
- While manufacturing added just 8,000 in February, that included a temporary job loss of 6,000 mostly due to a strike
- The long-term unemployed (jobless for 27 or more weeks) remained fairly constant at 2.7 million people. This group represents 31 percent of those identified as unemployed today.
- The civilian labor force participation rate was 62.8 percent in February 2015, again little changed.
- There were 2.2 million people classified as Marginally Attached to the labor force in February. These individuals are not currently in the workforce, want a job and have searched for a job in the past 12 months but are not counted as unemployed since they have not looked for a job in the past four weeks.
- Among the Marginally Attached, 732,000 workers were classified as Discouraged Workers – they are no longer searching for a job and believe there are no jobs for them.
Included in the jobs release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics are multiple detailed tables and related data. To read the report and access these click http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
Jobs are everything to an economy – and this economy is much better than most realize. Unless you are one of the unemployed.
The stock market today reacted by a decline as these strong new job numbers portend a rate increase from the Fed sooner rather than later.
Ted