US beats estimates and creates 255k jobs

July’s surprisingly strong US nonfarm payrolls report, with employment rising by 255,000, also showed the low end of the labour force gained strength at a rapid pace.

“The strong increase in labour force participation and drop in unemployment for three proxies of low-end services employment —Hispanics, teens, and those with less than a high school diploma — suggest that this was the best month for cheap labour of this expansion,” said Conor Sen, a Bloomberg View contributor and portfolio manager at New River Investments.

Unemployment among Americans 25 or over with less than a high school diploma fell by 118,000, to a total of 669,000, the lowest level since records began in 1992.

The unemployment rate for this segment also fell to 6.3%, from 7.5%, the lowest since October 2006, amid a rising participation rate and robust job gains.

Improving labour market outcomes among less-educated workers could further diminish support for Republican nominee Donald Trump, who has recently seen his poll numbers in national surveys and battleground states slide, ahead of the November US elections.

“This election has exposed an education gap, with college-educated voters supporting [Hillary] Clinton and those without college degrees more likely to support [Donald] Trump,” added Mr Sen.

“This jobs report shows that Mr Trump’s voters are finally starting to feel the effects of the economic expansion.”

Despite a weak end to July, the Bloomberg weekly US Consumer Comfort Index for workers earning less than $15,000 (€13,533)rose considerably over the course of the month, peaking at levels not seen since 2007