The US economy continues to show little sign of slowing down. The government reported Friday morning that 275,000 new jobs were created in February, compared to expectations for 200,000 new jobs. The rapid job growth of 353,000 originally reported for January was revised down to a still-respectable 229,000.
Even with previous months' downward revisions (a revision was also made for December), the three-month average job gain was a solid 244,000 and the six-month average was 228,000, noted economist Joe Brusuelas.
However, the unemployment rate fell short of expectations in February, rising to 3.9%, compared with expected 3.7% and 3.7% in January.
Immediately following the report, Bitcoin (BTC) rose slightly to $67,650. The traditional markets are currently hardly reacting to the new figures; U.S. stock futures, bond yields and the dollar fell slightly.
Going into 2024, markets expected a slowdown in the economy and inflation, which would lead to rapid interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve. So far, however, the economy remains robust and inflation remains stubbornly above the Fed's 2 percent target. As a result, expectations for the Fed's first easing have shifted from March to June or even later, and participants have now priced in only about 75 basis points of rate cuts this year, down from about 150 just a few weeks ago.
However, disappointment over the Fed's looser policy has not led to trouble in asset markets, where major U.S. stock averages and gold prices are all at or near all-time highs. Bitcoin has also hit a new record this year, although concerns about the economy or interest rate trends have taken a backseat to the overwhelming demand from spot ETFs.
Looking at other report details, average hourly wages rose 0.1% in February, falling short of expectations of 0.3% and marking a significant slowdown from January's 0.5%. Year-over-year, average hourly wages rose 4.3%, compared to the expected 4.4% and 4.4% in January.
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