Hosts Say August Payrolls Grew by 22,000, Below Expectations; Prior Months Revised Down

Unidentified Speaker 2 said the August employment release showed 22,000 payroll gains, well below forecasts: "22,000 jobs added in the month of August." The speaker added that the unemployment rate came in at 4.3%, up from July's 4.2%.

Speaker 2 placed special emphasis on revisions to prior months, saying the June and July numbers were revised downward overall: "For June and July together, combined 21,000 jobs lower than previously reported," with June revised down by 27,000 to a net -13,000 and July revised up by 6,000 to 79,000. The host characterized those revisions as the data point that "everybody is focused on."

The segment included a sector breakdown: Speaker 2 reported that "Healthcare added 31,000 jobs," that federal government employment fell by 15,000 in August and is "down by 97,000 since its peak in January," and that manufacturing was "down 12,000, down 4 months in a row, down 78,000 over the year." The speaker said the market responded modestly, with the Dow "lifting off the lows in the pre market on this data."

Unidentified Speaker 1 underscored the weaker-than-expected headline and summarized private versus public payrolls, saying private payrolls were "coming in" at 38,000 compared with a 75,000 expectation and noting a government loss of about 16,000 jobs. Speaker 1 added: "the 22,000 number... it's a it's a weaker than expected number, and these revisions are pretty brutal."

The hosts returned to reviewing the report after the exchange; no policy decisions, votes or formal actions were recorded in the transcript.