The U.S. job market has rebounded sharply from a sharp decline in February.
The United States added 178,000 jobs in March, after losing 133,000 jobs the previous month, according to data released Friday morning by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Economists predict 60,000 jobs will be added.
The unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, compared with 4.4% in February and 4.4% expected.
At least part of this is due to a sharp downward revision to the February data from the originally reported 92,000 drop.
Hours before the data was released, Bitcoin traded quietly near the $67,000 level It remained there minutes after the report was released.
U.S. stock index futures continued to edge lower, with the Nasdaq 100 down 0.2%. The 10-year U.S. Treasury yield jumped 4 basis points to 4.36%.
Lately, expectations for the future direction of interest rates have been influenced more by events in the Middle East and crude oil prices than by domestic economic growth prospects.
Just last week, soaring oil prices led to speculation that the Federal Reserve was about to raise interest rates. However, speaking earlier this week, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank recognized that an oil price shock, while initially making headline inflation data look worse, could dampen economic activity. He said the Fed would not rush to raise interest rates in response to short-term fluctuations in crude oil prices.
This morning’s strong performance points to growing economic momentum that could put a rate hike in 2026 back on the table.
