The U.S. job market and hiring accelerated unexpectedly in March, even as unemployment saw a slight increase, according to official data released amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s economic policies.
The world’s largest economy added 228,000 jobs last month, a figure well above analysts’ expectations, while the unemployment rate edged up slightly to 4.2%, from February’s 4.1%.
The hiring figure showed that the job market remained strong and significantly surpassed the 130,000 jobs analysts had anticipated.
Sectors that saw job gains included healthcare and social assistance, as well as retail, “partly reflecting workers returning after a strike,” according to the report.
However, federal government employment fell by 4,000 jobs in March.
This followed the loss of 11,000 jobs in February, as markets assess the full impact of the Trump administration’s government cuts.
Average hourly wages rose 0.3% in March, to $36, a slight uptick from February’s pace.
Looking ahead, economists are also monitoring the effects of the broad tariffs Trump imposed on some of the U.S.’s major trading partners in March, along with even broader measures set to take effect in April.
In response, China announced Friday that it will impose 34% tariffs on all U.S. imports starting April 10 in retaliation for Washington’s tariffs on Chinese goods.
The Ministry of Commerce also announced it will impose export controls on seven rare earth elements, including gadolinium, used in MRI machines, and yttrium, used in consumer electronics.
As a result of these measures, Wall Street futures, oil, and European markets fell.
As of 10:30 GMT, S&P 500 futures were down 1.36%, NASDAQ futures fell 1.31%, and Dow Jones futures lost 1.52%. Meanwhile, oil dropped over 5%.
Meanwhile, European markets continued yesterday’s downward trend at opening: London’s stock exchange fell 3.48%; Frankfurt’s dropped 4.46%; Paris declined 3.83%; Milan lost 7.18%; and Madrid fell 5.66%.
Separately, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) urged the U.S. to “correct its wrongful actions.” It stated that the tariffs will “further increase car prices and impose additional burdens on consumers in multiple countries, including Americans, and will have a negative impact on global economic recovery.”
Southeast Asian markets closed with losses
The main stock exchanges in Southeast Asia closed Friday’s sessions with losses ranging from 1% to just over 3%, weighed down once again by President Donald Trump’s tariff announcements.
Jakarta’s stock exchange did not operate today due to a holiday in Indonesia.
The VN Index in Ho Chi Minh City (formerly Saigon), one of the countries most affected by the tariffs, dropped 19.17 points, or 1.56%, closing at 1,210.67 after plunging 6.68% the previous day.
Elsewhere, Singapore’s STI Index lost 116.37 points, or 2.95%, settling at 3,825.86.
In Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur’s stock exchange fell 14.77 points, or 0.97%, with the KLCI index ending at 1,504.14.
In the Philippines, the Manila Stock Exchange dropped 61.54 points, or 1%, with the PSEi composite index closing at 6,084.19.
In Thailand, the SET Index in Bangkok fell 36.60 points, or 3.15%, settling at 1,125.21.
Image: Infobae
