Retail trade jobs rose for the second consecutive month.
While retail trade employment showed little net change in 2024, general merchandise retailers added 31,000 jobs in January. Last year was marked by up and down retail job gains and losses throughout 2024.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday said total nonfarm payroll employment rose by 143,000 in January, and the unemployment rate edged down to 4 percent. Retail trade is one of the categories that posted job gains for the month. In addition to general merchandise retailers, furniture and home furnishings retailers added 5,000 jobs. Offsetting the gain was a loss of 7,000 jobs from the electronics and appliance retail channel.
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January’s data suggests healthy job creation in retail. It follows the 23,000 jobs created in December in apparel, accessories, shoe and jewelry retailers. In general, the retail trade added 43,000 jobs in December. However, there was concern that job losses could follow in January once seasonal hires for the holiday shopping season from October through December come to an end.
Economists’ consensus expectations were for a 175,000 monthly gain. Some of that miss was offset by upward revisions to job growth in the prior two months. BLS data showed an upward revision in employment growth by a combined 100,000 in November and December.
Economists at Wells Fargo said that while the 143,000 hired came in a little light of expectations, the decline in the unemployment rate to an eight-month low indicates that the “labor market remains on solid footing.”
The employment data should keep the Fed on pause for a few months before they consider any other rate reductions, the Wells Fargo economists concluded.
Meanwhile, jobs and inflation top the list of consumer concerns, according to the January’s reading of The Conference Board’s Consumer Confidence Index. The next report for February will be available at the end of this month. That should reflect any update on their views of current labor market conditions.
Wells Fargo economists noted on Friday that consumer sentiment measured the University of Michigan’s data report fell to a seven-month low. The decline was likely triggered by the new tariff policy under the Trump administration as inflation fears rise.
