US Economic data release update
The US labour market showed mixed but generally resilient signals in March 2026.
The unemployment rate edged down to 4.3% from 4.4% in February, coming in slightly below market expectations.
However, the decline was largely driven by a drop in labour force participation, which slipped to 61.9% as the labour force shrank by 396,000. The number of unemployed fell by 332,000, although total employment also declined modestly.
Meanwhile, nonfarm payrolls increased by 178K, the strongest job growth since December 2024 and well above expectations of 60K.
Hiring was led by healthcare, construction, transportation, and manufacturing, while federal government and financial sector jobs declined.
Notably, the broader U-6 unemployment rate rose slightly to 8%, indicating some underlying labour market slack despite solid headline job gains.
