“Similar things happened in the first part of the year, always to the negative.”
But he insisted the world’s biggest economy was “booming” under his leadership.
The United States added 73,000 jobs last month, while the unemployment rate rose to 4.2% from 4.1%, said the Department of Labor on Friday.
Hiring numbers for May were revised down from 144,000 to 19,000. The figure for June was shifted from 147,000 to 14,000.
This was notably lower than job creation levels in recent years. During the pandemic, the economy lost jobs.
The employment data points to challenges in the key labour market as companies took a cautious approach in hiring and investment while grappling with Trump’s sweeping – and rapidly changing – tariffs this year.
The numbers also pile pressure on the central bank as it mulls the best time to cut interest rates.
With tariff levels climbing since the start of the year on imports from various countries and on sector-specific products such as steel, aluminium and automotives, many firms have faced higher business costs.
Some are now passing the costs along to consumers.
‘Game-changer’
“This is a game-changer jobs report. The labour market is deteriorating quickly,” said Heather Long, chief economist at the Navy Federal Credit Union.
She said of the growth in July that “75% of those jobs were in one sector: healthcare”.
“The economy needs certainty soon on tariffs,” Long said. “The longer this tariff whiplash lasts, the more likely this weak hiring environment turns into layoffs.”
But it remains unclear when the dust will settle, with Trump ordering the reimposition of steeper tariffs on scores of economies on Friday, which are set to take effect in a week.
The President also raised tariffs on Canadian imports, although broad exemptions remain.
Mortgage Bankers Association economist Joel Kan said that for now, “goods-producing industries saw contraction for the third straight month”.
“Service industries involved in trade also saw declines in job growth, potentially a result of the uncertain tariff environment, as businesses either put their activity on pause or pulled back altogether,” Kan said in a note.
‘Overly cautious’
A sharp weakening in the labour market could push the Federal Reserve towards slashing interest rates sooner to shore up the economy.
On Friday, the two Fed officials who voted this week against the central bank’s decision to keep rates unchanged warned that doing nothing risks further damaging the economy.
Fed vice-chairwoman for supervision Michelle Bowman and Governor Christopher Waller argued that the inflationary effects of tariffs were temporary.
They added that the bank should focus on fortifying the economy to avert further weakening in the labour market.
Putting off an interest rate cut “could result in a deterioration in the labour market and a further slowing in economic growth”, Bowman said.
Waller said: “I believe that the wait-and-see approach is overly cautious.”
- Agence France-Presse
