Dec 9, 2019

Private payrolls dip while government job report soars

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Data: BLS, ADP; Chart: Axios Visuals

Last week's ADP private payrolls report was a serious head fake for Friday's blockbuster U.S. jobs report from the Labor Department.

Why it matters: The government's numbers deviate significantly from the trend, which likely mean the report is an outlier but it could also signal the start of a new trend.

By the numbers: The 266,000 jobs added was the second highest total this year, trailing only January's 312,000, and was in sharp contrast to the slowing trend seen for most of the year. It was also the most the two reports have diverged for all of 2019, and by a significant margin.

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Dion Rabouin

Growing divide between the two Americas

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

Life in the U.S. is increasingly divided into two realities — one in which things have almost never been better and another in which it's hard to imagine them being worse.

Driving the news: Bankruptcies led more companies to announce job cuts last year than at any time in more than a decade, WSJ's Aisha Al-Muslim reports (subscription), citing data from outplacement firm Challenger, Gray and Christmas.

Go deeperJan 3, 2020

Erica Pandey

An unsettling future for millions of American jobs

Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios

The U.S. economy is besting expectations for job growth, and the unemployment rate is at its lowest in several decades — but the other side of the story is that millions of jobs out there just aren't good enough.

Why it matters: Almost half of all American workers are stuck in low-wage jobs that often don't pay enough to support their lives, lack benefits and sit squarely inside the automation bullseye.

Go deeperDec 19, 2019 - Economy & Business

Dion Rabouin

Midwestern manufacturing improved in December but is still contracting

Data: ISM Chicago; Chart: Axios Visuals

The manufacturing industry in the Midwest continued to contract in December, but did exceed expectations and deliver the best reading in four months.

Why it matters: The Chicago PMI, which tracks manufacturing companies based in the Chicago region, continues to rebound from October's abysmal report that showed the weakest number in four years and the second lowest in a decade.

Go deeperJan 2, 2020