U.S. Adds Just 235,000 Jobs After 2 Strong Months

The unemployment rate met expectations and dropped to 5.2% from 5.4% in July.

America’s employers added just 235,000 jobs in August, a surprisingly weak gain after two months of robust hiring at a time when the Delta variant’s spread has discouraged some people from flying, shopping and eating out. The unemployment rate dropped to 5.2% from 5.4% in July. The August job gains the government reported Friday fell far short of the roughly 940,000 that employers had added in each of the previous two months, when widespread vaccinations allowed the economy to fully reopen from pandemic restrictions. Still, the number of job openings remains at record levels, and hiring is expected to stay solid in the coming months.