The American economy created 228,000 jobs in March 2025, much higher than economists had predicted and representing a significant rise from the 117,000 jobs created in February. But even with the better-than-predicted job growth, the overall unemployment rate rose to 4.2%.
Economists had estimated a more modest increase of 140,000 jobs for March below the average of 167,000 new positions added each month during the last year. Private payroll company ADP said that 155,000 of the new jobs were in the private sector.
President Donald Trump reacted to the latest labor statistics with a high-spirited reaction, tweeting on his Truth Social site: “GREAT JOB NUMBERS, FAR BETTER THAN EXPECTED. IT’S ALREADY WORKING. HANG TOUGH, WE CAN’T LOSE!!!”
The employment report is just days after President Trump announced comprehensive new tariffs, which raised alarm about a global trade war and put a cloud over future job creation. Economists are warning the job market could be entering a period of uncertainty.
Whereas March figures currently are not demonstrating the economic implications of these trade initiatives, advisors predict change will ultimately arrive. “While any Canada, Mexico and China tariff imposed likely would not have significantly disrupted March results,” Matthew Weller, the global head of research at FOREX.com, indicated, “dismissal due to Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in likely short order” may start being felt on figures.
In fact, an independent report by Challenger, Gray & Christmas indicated that DOGE shed 216,000 federal positions in March.
Barclays analysts joined the cautionary sentiment by indicating that markets may interpret strong or weak jobs numbers as a negative due to pending economic uncertainty. “This is a lose-lose situation for markets,” they wrote in a Thursday research note.
