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Jobless rates fall in July for Asian Americans, bucking overall trend

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A sign for a health-care career fair at Cape Fear Community College in Wilmington, North Carolina, on Feb. 28, 2023.

Allison Joyce | Bloomberg | Getty Images

The unemployment rate fell for Asian Americans from June to July, bucking a broader trend, according to data released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment rate among Asian Americans dipped to 3.7% in July from 4.1% a month earlier. The result went against the overall unemployment rate, which rose to 4.3% last month from 4.1% in June.

Meanwhile, the jobless rate for white Americans rose to 3.8% in July, up from 3.5% a month earlier. For Hispanic Americans, this number climbed to 5.3% last month, compared to the rate of 4.9% in June. The jobless rate held steady at 6.3% for Black workers.

When taking gender into account, the unemployment rate declined for Black women, who saw their jobless rate tick down to 5.5% in July, compared to 5.7% a month earlier. For Black men, this number jumped to 6.6% last month, up from 6.1% in June.

July’s jobless rates rose to 3.5% from 3.2% for white men, while increasing to 3.4% last month from 3.1% for white women. The rate similarly increased to 4.4% last month from 4.2% for Hispanic males, and it jumped to 5.4% in July from 4.5% for Hispanic female workers.

Jobless rates for Asian workers based on gender were not readily available.

But Elise Gould, senior economist at the Economic Policy Institute, stressed that these numbers include a lot of volatility — especially for the smaller population groups — and cautioned against reading too much into the trends.

In fact, Gould emphasized that while the overall unemployment rate rose last month, the labor market was still strong for the prime-age employment group, or for workers ages 25 to 54. The employment rate for this age cohort was 80.9% in July, the economist said. Gould added that female workers in this group continue to recover.

“More people came back into the labor force. Many of them did not find jobs, and that’s why the unemployment rate ticked up,” Gould told CNBC in an interview. “But when you look at the flip side, things are definitely stronger.”

Last month, the overall labor force participation rate increased to 62.7% in July, up from 62.6% in the prior month. This measure represents the percentage of the population that is either currently employed or actively seeking employment.

For white workers, the labor force participation rate ticked higher to 62.3% last month, compared to June’s rate of 62.2%. The rate rose to 63.2% in July, versus the previous month’s level of 62.7% for Black Americans.

For Hispanic workers, the labor force participation rate came in at 67.3% in July, slightly lower than the prior month’s reading of 67.5%. Meanwhile, this rate among Asians was 65.7% last month, versus 65.9% in June.

— CNBC’s Gabriel Cortes contributed to this report.

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What would Robert Kennedy junior mean for American health?

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AS IN MOST marriages of convenience, Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy junior make unusual bedfellows. One enjoys junk food, hates exercise and loves oil. The other talks of clean food, getting America moving again and wants to eliminate oils of all sorts (from seed oil to Mr Trump’s beloved “liquid gold”). One has called the covid-19 vaccine a “miracle”, the other is a long-term vaccine sceptic. Yet on November 14th Mr Trump announced that Mr Kennedy was his pick for secretary of health and human services (HHS).

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Economics

UK economy ekes out 0.1% growth, below expectations

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Bank of England in the City of London on 6th November 2024 in London, United Kingdom. The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the primary central business district CBD of London. The City of London is widely referred to simply as the City is also colloquially known as the Square Mile. (photo by Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)

Mike Kemp | In Pictures | Getty Images

The U.K. economy expanded by 0.1% in the third quarter of the year, the Office for National Statistics said Friday.

That was below the expectations of economists polled by Reuters who forecast 0.2% gross domestic product growth on the previous three months of the year.

It comes after inflation in the U.K. fell sharply to 1.7% in September, dipping below the Bank of England’s 2% target for the first time since April 2021. The fall in inflation helped pave the way for the central bank to cut rates by 25 basis points on Nov. 7, bringing its key rate to 4.75%.

The Bank of England said last week it expects the Labour Government’s tax-raising budget to boost GDP by 0.75 percentage points in a year’s time. Policymakers also noted that the government’s fiscal plan had led to an increase in their inflation forecasts.

The outcome of the recent U.S. election has fostered much uncertainty about the global economic impact of another term from President-elect Donald Trump. While Trump’s proposed tariffs are expected to be widely inflationary and hit the European economy hard, some analysts have said such measures could provide opportunities for the British economy.

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey gave little away last week on the bank’s views of Trump’s tariff agenda, but he did reference risks around global fragmentation.

“Let’s wait and see where things get to. I’m not going to prejudge what might happen, what might not happen,” he told reporters during a press briefing.

This is a breaking news story. Please refresh for updates.

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