U.S. Economy Added 172,000 Jobs in May 2026

By Tom Burnett CFA On June 5, 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued its Employment Report for May.  Total employment rose by 172,000 from the previous month. The unemployment rate was 4.3%, little changed from  April.  The rate has been in a narrow range (4.3%-4.5%) since July 2025.  The number…

By Tom Burnett CFA On May 12, 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued its CPI Report for April 2026. The CPI rose by 0.6% in the month, following an increase of 0.9% in March. The CPI increased by 3.8% from the prior year, compared to 3.3% in March. The Core Index, excluding food and...

By Tom Burnett CFA On May 8, 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Employment Report for April. Total payroll employment rose by 115,000 in the month. The unemployment rate was little changed at 4.3% with 7.4 million job seekers, slightly more than the 6.9 million job openings (latest Jolts…

By Tom Burnett CFA On April 10, 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued its CPI Report for March 2026. The CPI rose 0.9% in March, after rising 0.3% in February. The March increase was driven by a 21.2% increase in the price of gasoline. The CPI rose by 3.3% from one year ago, compared...

By Tom Burnett CFA On April 3, 2026, the Bureau of Labor Statistics issued its Employment Report for March 2026. Total nonfarm employment increased by 178,000 for the month, after falling by 133,000 in February. The unemployment rate fell slightly to 4.3%. The number of job seekers rose to 7.2 million…