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Welcome to The Logoff: The fundamentals of the US economy are…starting to look a little about.
What happened? On Friday, we learned that the US economy shed 92,000 jobs last month – far from the predicted gain of 50,000 and a sign about the overall health of the economy.
Unemployment also rose slightly to 4.4 percent, and the number of jobs from December was revised downward, from a gain of 48,000 to a loss of 17,000. The economy still gained jobs in January, but overall, the adjustment meant job growth over the previous three months was negligible.
What is the context? Friday’s economic news comes at a particularly bad time for President Donald Trump, who is also currently dealing with an economic shock of his own making. The cost of oil has been rising all week due to the war in Iran, which has thrown much of the world’s energy supply into chaos.
In the US, gas prices are up to $3.32/gallon on average, about 34 cents higher than last Friday. As my colleague Eric Levitz has writtenExpensive gas doesn’t just mean short-term pain for consumers; unchecked, rising oil prices can increase inflation and slow economic growth.
what is the main picture? For now, Friday’s job numbers and rising energy prices are best thought of as warning signs — not good news, but not disasters. That could change, though, as Trump’s open war continues.
And so, it’s time to leave…
Hello, readers, good news: We’re not over the Olympics yet. If you’re looking to curl up a little more, the Paralympic Winter Games start today. NPR has a great primer hereand I enjoyed it too this story from The Athletic (gift link) about the technological development behind sit skis, which some Para athletes use in downhill events.
As always, thanks for reading, have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here on Monday!
