The US economy unexpectedly added jobs in May after suffering record losses in the prior month, offering the clearest signal yet that the downturn triggered by the Covid-19 pandemic was probably over, though the road to recovery could be long.
The labour department’s closely watched employment report on Friday also showed the jobless rate falling to 13.3 per cent last month from 14.7 per cent in April, a post World War II high.
It followed on the heels of surveys showing consumer confidence, manufacturing and services industries stabilising. Economic conditions have significantly improved as businesses reopened after shuttering in mid-March to slow the spread of Covid-19.
“The country has turned the corner from the pandemic and the recession it created for now, but all the workers who lost their paychecks will find it difficult to regain their place in society as many of these jobs are gone forever,” said Chris Rupkey, chief economist at MUFG in New York.
“It took years for the economy to grow enough to find jobs for those unemployed in the last recession, and it will take years again this time to do the same.”
Non-farm payrolls rose by 2.5 million jobs last month after a record plunge of 20.7 million in April. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls falling by 8 million jobs in May.
