US adds 147,000 jobs in June, surpassing expectations amid Trump trade war
The US economy added 147,000 jobs in June, a sign of continuing strength in the labor market amid Donald Trump’s trade war.The number of jobs added surpassed expectations, as economists largely anticipated a drop in openings.Instead, 3,000 more jobs were added in June compared with May, according to new job figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).The unemployment rate actually decreased to 4.1%, down from 4.
2% in May.Job gains were seen in state government and healthcare, which saw increases of 47,000 and 39,000 jobs, respectively.Meanwhile, federal government job losses continued, with another 7,000 roles down in June, as the Trump administration continues to cut jobs.The total job loss in the federal government has been 69,000 since January.Though the president’s tariffs have rocked the US stock market, which has seen a dramatic rebound after dipping down 15% in the spring, economists have been worrying that the labor market has just been slower to show sensitivity to the tariffs.
New data had shown employers showing signs of hesitancy.The payroll firm ADP found that the private sector lost 33,000 jobs in June, far below the 100,000 increase that was expected, and the first decrease since March 2023.The dip in job openings does no necessarily mean companies are laying off more workers; rather, they are creating fewer new positions.“Though layoffs continue to be rare, a hesitancy to hire and a reluctance to replace departing workers led to job losses last month,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, in a statement.John Waldron, president of Goldman Sachs, said the American economy was “breaking more to the positive” than many expected after Trump unveiled sweeping tariffs in early April.
“The US economy is surprisingly resilient, both in terms of consumer spend [and] the labor dynamic,” Waldron told reporters on Thursday.“And just general economic economic activity is stronger than one might have guessed if you were sitting here on April 3, projecting what the tariff policy would deliver.”Data from BLS that measures job openings and turnovers in the labor market found that while job openings had climbed in May, to its highest level since November, the vast majority of openings were concentrated in the leisure and hospitality industry.Economists with Citigroup said the spike in new jobs could be temporary as companies opened new positions in response to Trump’s crackdown on immigrants, fearing that immigrant employees could lose work permits.The White House has spent the last few months downplaying the impact tariffs have on the domestic economy, despite anxiety from consumers and businesses over the impact tariffs have on prices.
The deadline for Trump’s 90-day pause on some of his highest tariffs is scheduled to expire next week, as the White House tries to broker deals with dozens of countries that could face high tariffs,The White House announced on Tuesday a deal with Vietnam, whose products were scheduled to face a 46% tariff,The country agreed to a 20% tariff rate, with no tariffs placed on US exports,The deal with Vietnam follows deals Trump has made with the UK and China, but there are dozens of other countries whose exports could face high tariffs without a deal,Amid economic uncertainty, Trump has tried to pass blame on to the Federal Reserve and its chair, Jerome Powell.
On Monday, Trump sent an open letter to Powell demanding that the Fed lower interest rates.“He’s costing us a fortune because he keeps the rate way up,” Trump wrote on social media.Powell, in turn, has said that the Fed has not lowered interest rates because of economic uncertainty caused by Trump’s tariffs.“In effect, we went on hold when we saw the size of the tariffs,” Powell said.“Essentially all inflation forecasts for the United States went up materially as a consequence of the tariffs.
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First-time buyers turn from rural areas to Britain’s regional cities
With the rise of home working and surging house prices in many urban areas, one might have assumed that British cities had lost some of their appeal to homebuyers over the past decade, but it turns out the opposite is the case.An analysis of the first five months of this year shows the number of would-be first-time buyers in Great Britain looking to move to cities is up by 16% on average compared with the same period in 2015.The location to record the most significant jump in first-time buyer inquiries over that period is Dundee, Scotland’s fourth-largest city and, it is said, its sunniest.Some will be surprised to learn that homebuyers’ love affair with cities has intensified, bearing in mind that the pandemic apparently prompted many to think about a new life on the coast or in the countryside.The data was crunched by the property website Rightmove, which looked at Great Britain’s 50 largest cities, excluding London, and 50 of the most popular coastal areas
Crumbs! Biscuit museum’s Jaffa Cake display reignites old debate
It could be described as a storm in a teacup but the humble Jaffa Cake is once again at the centre of controversy after McVitie’s asked a biscuit museum to pull the snack from a display.The manufacturer took issue with the orangey treat being showcased in a museum devoted to biscuits because, for VAT purposes anyway, it is officially a cake. This fact was settled long ago in a legal battle with the taxman.The David and Goliath-style row – which some suggested had been orchestrated by McVitie’s to boost sales – has reignited the debate.Days after the biscuit museum in Bermondsey, south London, unveiled the display, McVitie’s sent it a cease-and-desist-style letter requesting “the immediate removal of Jaffa Cakes from your biscuit exhibit”
Skirting the issue: Designer dress goes missing from Bezos-Sánchez wedding
Lauren Sánchez packed 27 designer dresses for her wedding to the billionaire Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos, in Venice last week, but left with only 26 after one went missing.The couple, who are now honeymooning in Taormina, Sicily, were wed during a star-studded three-day celebration in the lagoon city.They left Venice on Sunday, but mystery over the missing dress has generated chatter in Venice, with Corriere della Sera claiming that it was stolen, possibly by someone who evaded security and gatecrashed a party on the tiny island of San Giorgio, where the couple exchanged rings, on Friday. The newspaper said the number of gatecrashers to the event was such that officers from the local unit of Italy’s anti-terrorism squad, Digos, were called to the island.The newspaper also alleged a vintage Dolce & Gabbana-designed dress, either worn by the bride or wedding guest Ivanka Trump, was torn and caught fire during another party
Fears AI factcheckers on X could increase promotion of conspiracy theories
A decision by Elon Musk’s X social media platform to enlist artificial intelligence chatbots to draft factchecks risks increasing the promotion of “lies and conspiracy theories”, a former UK technology minister has warned.Damian Collins accused Musk’s firm of “leaving it to bots to edit the news” after X announced on Tuesday that it would allow large language models to write community notes to clarify or correct contentious posts, before users approve them for publication. The notes have previously been written by humans.X said using AI to write factchecking notes – which sit beneath some X posts – “advances the state of the art in improving information quality on the internet”.Keith Coleman, the vice-president of product at X, said humans would review AI-generated notes and the note would appear only if people with a variety of viewpoints found it useful
David Porecki returns to Wallabies team to face Fiji after 643-day international absence
The Wallabies have opted for experience in their front row to face Fiji this weekend, with former captain David Porecki called back into the team, 643 days since he last pulled on a gold jersey.Porecki, 32, was named on Friday in the starting XV for Sunday’s Test in Newcastle, alongside all-time cap record holder James Slipper and 80-Test tighthead Allan Alaalatoa, in a forward pack missing big guns Will Skelton and Rob Valetini, who both have calf injuries.Porecki last ran out for Australia at the ill-fated 2023 Rugby World Cup, then didn’t play at all in 2024 due to separate Achilles and calf issues, but has got the nod from coach Joe Schmidt to return to the international fold at McDonald Jones Stadium.He captained Australia to a historic loss the last time Australia met Fiji; he is one of nine players backing up from that clash at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France, where Fiji posted their first victory over the Wallabies in 69 years, winning 22-15.Joseph-Aukuso Suaalii’s recovery from a fractured jaw is complete and the 21-year-old will partner inside centre Len Ikitau, reestablishing a combination from the Spring tour
Carey and Webster steady Australia after more batting woe in West Indies
Same bat time, same bat channel. That’s the feeling for Australia at the moment, as normal programming followed normal programming: top order failure, middle order digging the team out of a hole, a score that shouldn’t be enough against a proper batting side but might well be enough against a vulnerable one. As the second Test against West Indies began on the small island of Grenada on Thursday, a reasonable start of 47 without loss abruptly became 50-3, and 110-5, before finally recovering to 286 all out, on a hot tropical day when occasional rain bursts created short delays, and bad light prevented a late tilt against West Indies’ top order.Given how rarely the Grenada National Stadium is used, the surface was an unknown quantity. West Indies picked a fifth quick, Australia shrugged and picked the same four bowlers they would choose for St Moritz ice cricket if the chance came up
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