2-Year US Government Bonds Retreat After Jobs Data

The unemployment rate is forecast to hold steady at a seven-year low of 5.3 percent, near the 5.0 percent to 5.2 percent range most Fed officials think is consistent with a steady but low level of inflation.

A Reuters analysis of economists forecast You can include.S. nonfarm payrolls depended on 223,000 january, coordinating June’s job gains, some that would be just a little apart from the each month normal to use on the first much less the entire year. But high-end jobs in professional services and technical fields continued to show growth, increasing by 27,000 in July, slightly higher than the average monthly gain of 25,000 over the prior 12 months.

The central bank has been hinting at a rate increase for months, and a strong jobs report could clear the way for that hike to happen in September.

Though hiring has slowed from last year’s robust pace, it remains at double the rate needed to keep up with population growth.

The number of Americans who have been out of work for 27 weeks or longer was essentially unchanged last month, at 2.2 million, constituting 26.9 percent of the unemployed.

Still, the gain supports views that a sharp slowdown in compensation growth in the second quarter and consumer spending in June were temporary.

The jury is still out on when the Federal Reserve will raise rates, and according to Fed Governor Jerome Powell, nothing has been decided, including where he stands on the issue. Economists surveyed by CNNMoney predicted the economy would add 216,000 jobs.

In addition, a number of retailers, including Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, Target and TJX Cos have increased pay for hourly workers.

The rebound by treasuries came as traders looked ahead to the monthly jobs report due on Friday, which could have a significant impact on the outlook for interest rates.

That vexing question will nearly certainly be asked again on Friday when the July jobs report is released and the numbers once again show a healthy amount of new jobs and another decline in the headline unemployment rate. But be aware that July employment reports have a habit of blowing up the script. The impending rate increase, a confirmation of the economic recovery in the US, has prompted investors to dump their holdings in the global stock markets in favor of the US dollar and other dollar-based instruments, and weakened many currencies, including the peso.

Oilfield giants Schlumberger and Halliburton, two big oil service companies that plan to merge, disclosed last week that they had cut 27,000 jobs between them this year.