United States: Employment rises in April
Latest reading: The US economy added 115,000 jobs in April 2026, after an upwardly revised increase of 185,000 in March and well above market expectations of 62,000.
Job gains were recorded in health care, transportation and warehousing, and retail trade. Federal government employment continued to fall, while declines were also reported in information and manufacturing.
Although the data points to a moderation in hiring, it also marks the first consecutive monthly increase in employment in nearly a year. Finally, the unemployment rate remained at 4.3%.
Panelist insight: Digging into the data, TD Economics’ Thomas Feltmate said:
“Payrolls were volatile through Q1, largely due to temporary factors like inclement weather and a healthcare strike in California. With those effects now in the rearview mirror, April provided as the first clean read on hiring for 2026 and the underlying details were reasonably constructive, despite the recent surge in energy prices. Job growth appears to have picked up from its anemic pace at the end of last year and is now running reasonably close to its breakeven rate.”