Getty ImagesHiring in the US remained solid last month, despite turmoil stemming from changes to trade policy.
Employers added 177,000 jobs in April, while the unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.2%, the Labor Department said.
The gain was bigger than many analysts had expected in a month marked by chaos in financial markets and rising concerns about the economy tracked in surveys of businesses and households.
The resilience of the US jobs market over the last few years has surprised analysts, helping to sustain spending even as households faced rising prices and a sharp jump in interest rates.
The latest figures have raised some hopes that the country may be able to weather the uncertainty from tariff policy without suffering a painful economic downturn.
But analysts expressed caution, noting that the impact of the sweeping import taxes announced by Donald Trump would take more time to be fully felt.
Olu Sonola, head of US economic research at Fitch Ratings, said it was a good jobs report, despite revisions showing employers added fewer jobs in January and February than initially estimated.
“The key message coming from the totality of the data this week is that the US economy was fundamentally strong through the first week of April, however, the outlook remains very uncertain,” he said.
The Labor Department’s surveys were conducted less than two weeks after Trump announced his “Liberation Day” tariffs, which have raised the average rate of import taxes in the US to the highest level in more than a century.
Many firms have said they are moving cautiously for now, citing rapid changes in policy and hope that Trump’s promises of trade deals will bear fruit.
Hiring last month was led by healthcare, warehousing and transportation firms.
Employment declined in the federal government – where Trump has vowed to cut spending – but that was offset by gains in local government.
Payrolls also dropped at manufacturing and retail firms.
Average hourly pay rose 3.8% over the last 12 months, according to the report.
Seema Shah, chief global strategist at Principal Asset Management, said the figures suggested the US central bank does not face urgency to cut interest rates to support the economy.
“Why would the Fed start cutting rates right now when the unemployment rate is near record lows, the consumer is still fairly robust, and inflation is running above target?” she said.
“The economy will weaken in the coming months but, with this underlying momentum, the US has a decent chance of averting recession if it can step back from the tariff brink in time.”
