The labor market returned to its pre-pandemic level with the payrolls expanding by 528,000 in July and unemployment rate dipping to a five-decade low of 3.5%.
Americans are driving less than during the pandemic after gasoline prices soared above $5 a gallon across the nation. With the surging shale oil production and lack of new demand, oil prices are likely to continue to decline for a while.
The U.S. GDP shrank for the second quarter in a row but the annual pace of decline slowed. An uptick in exports were offset by the larger declines in inventory investments, government spending, and personal consumption.
The Federal Reserve held out for higher rates and highlighted its commitment to bring down the inflation to 2% target. Despite the Fed's aggressive action, the Fed is significantly lagging inflation for several months.
June retail sales rose 1% from the revised May sales and surged 8.4% from a year ago. Resilient consumers kept spending as gasoline prices briefly topped $5 a gallon and inflation stayed at 4-decade high.
Employers expanded payroll at a fast pace in June and jobless rate held at 3.6% for the fourth month in a row. The labor force participation rate, at 62.2%, and the employment-population ratio, at 59.9%, were little changed over the month.
The U.S. goods and services trade deficit edged lower in May but jumped from a year ago. The U.S. recorded the largest deficit with China, Germany, and Mexico.
