The Biden-era economy is proving to be weaker than expected, according to the latest January jobs report released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Friday. The report showed slower job growth, yet stronger-than-anticipated wage gains and a dip in unemployment, leaving the economic outlook uncertain.
Nonfarm payrolls rose by just 143,000 last month, falling short of economists’ expectations of 169,000 and marking a sharp decline from December’s revised gain of 307,000. However, wages surged, rising 0.5% for the month and 4.1% year-over-year, while the unemployment rate dropped slightly to 4%.
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In response to the report, the White House pushed back against concerns about economic weakness, with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt framing the numbers as confirmation that President Trump’s pro-growth policies are necessary to revive the economy.
“Today’s jobs report reveals the Biden economy was far worse than anyone thought, and underscores the necessity of President Trump’s pro-growth policies. During his first weeks in office, President Trump declared a national energy emergency to Make America Energy Dominant Again, pledged to cut ten regulations for every new regulatory action, and outlined a plan to deliver the largest tax cut in history for hardworking Americans,” said Leavitt. “President Trump is delivering on his promise to restore our broken economy, revive small business optimism, create jobs, and ignite a new Golden Age for America.”
The Trump administration’s economic team has been emphasizing deregulation, tax reform, and energy independence as key pillars of their economic strategy. Trump’s recent executive orders targeting federal bureaucracy and environmental regulations aim to reduce business constraints and encourage job creation.
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The latest BLS report showed a mixed picture of the labor market:
- Job gains were concentrated in health care (44,000), retail (34,000), and government (32,000), while mining-related industries lost 8,000 positions.
- The labor force participation rate ticked up to 62.6%, showing a small but notable increase in worker engagement.
- Average hourly earnings jumped by 0.5% in January, higher than the anticipated 0.3% gain, marking a 4.1% year-over-year increase.
The report also included annual benchmark revisions to 2024 jobs data, showing that previous payroll estimates were significantly overcounted. The BLS revised down the total job count by 589,000 for the 12 months through March 2024.
This means that job growth under the Biden administration was even weaker than initially reported, further bolstering the Trump administration’s argument that Biden’s economic legacy was based on inflated numbers and unsustainable policies.
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