Job growth boomed in March at the fastest pace since last summer, as stronger economic growth and an aggressive vaccination effort contributed to a surge in hospitality and construction jobs, the Labor Department reported Friday.
Nonfarm payrolls increased by 916,000 for the month while the unemployment rate fell to 6%.
Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for an increase of 675,000 and an unemployment rate of 6%. The total was the highest since the 1.58 million added in August 2020.
“It shows that the economy is healing, that those who lost their jobs are coming back into the workforce as the recovery continues and restrictions are lifted,” said Quincy Krosby, chief market strategist at Prudential Financial. “The only concern here is if we have another wave of Covid that leads to another round of closures.”
Stock market futures showed muted reaction to the numbers, though government bond yields rose. Wall Street is not open for trading Friday, and the bond market is on a shortened day due to the Good Friday observance.
Reference: CNBC
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