'Hard to build a stable economy': Jobs report reflects 'uncertainty' from 'tariff threats'

06 June

President Donald Trump inside the White House Oval Office on February 10, 2025 (Official White House photo by Daniel Torok/Flickr)

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its jobs report for May 2025 on Friday morning, June 6, and the news was mostly good. Unemployment remained at 4.2 percent in the United States in May, and 139,000 new non-farm new payroll jobs were created.

The report came during a period of economic uncertainty in the U.S., where economists on both the left and the right are worried about the effect that President Donald Trump's steep new tariffs will have.

Reactions to the report came swiftly. Jared Bernstein, a senior fellow at the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities and former chairman of the U.S. Council of Economic Advisers, told MSNBC's Ana Cabrera, "Jobs came in pretty solidly, a little above expectations."

Trump responded to the BLS figures by calling for U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to cut interest rates by 1 percent. But Bernstein thought that was a bad idea, arguing that interest rate cuts are a tool the Fed uses when the economic news is bad — not when it's mostly positive.

Bernstein told Cabrera, "Trump can say all he wants, but I think [the Fed is] going to stay in wait-and-see mode."

The BLS report is also receiving a lot of reactions on the Elon Musk-owned X, formerly Twitter.

Thomas J. Thompson, chief economist at Havas, tweeted, "May jobs report beats expectations with 139K new jobs and wage growth at 3.9% YoY. Unemployment steady at 4.2%. Labor market stays resilient, giving the Fed room to stay patient on rate cuts. Balanced growth, cautious optimism."

Gregory Daco, chief economist for EY News, wrote, " I foresee +93k, with downside risks… U-3: 4.2% (flat)…. Part rate could drop a tick…. Wage growth easing."

Wall Street Journal reporter Ray A. Smith posted, "Hiring Slowed in May, With 139,000 New Jobs Unemployment rate held steady at 4.2%."

Financial consultant Don Pasha commented, "Per Challenger Jobs Cuts report, US based cos announced 94,000 new job cuts in May 2025. For the first 5 mos of 2025, job cuts totaled 696,000, an inc of 80% from the 386,000 in the first 5 months of 2024. This doesn't bode well 4 spending by consumers who r looking 2 stretch $s!"

Investor Tony Seruga tweeted, "Breaking — Jobs report better than expected, payrolls increase by 139,000, prior months revised lower."

Economist Joshua Baum wrote, "May Jobs Report: 139K added, but workforce shrank by 625K and hiring is slowing. Hard to build a stable economy when tariff threats add more uncertainty for workers and small biz."

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