MNI BRIEF: US March Payrolls Beats Expectations Again

U.S. employers added 303,000 jobs in March, the most since last May and better than the 214,000 expected by Wall Street, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Friday.

The prior two months' hiring was also revised up by 22,000, while the unemployment rate ticked down a tenth to 3.8%.

Job gains were led by health care (72,000), government (71,000) and leisure and hospitality (49,000), three sectors that contributed nearly three-quarters of last year’s new payrolls. The labor force jumped by another 469,000, and the participation rate rose a tenth to 62.7%. Average hourly earnings added 0.3% in March, and is up 4.1% from a year earlier.

The wage growth measure has slowed from 4.6% a year ago, supporting the idea that the labor market can continue to strengthen without adding to inflationary pressures as the supply of workers grows. Federal Reserve officials said in recent days they're in no rush to cut interest rates when the labor market is as robust as it's been. (See: MNI POLICY: Fed Won't Hesitate To Ease If Employment Falters)