U.S. Posts Job Gains as Unemployment Falls in May
In a strong signal that the economy may be rebounding from the COVID-19 pandemic, the U.S. unemployment rate posted a surprise decline from 14.7% in April to 13.3% in May as total payroll employment increased by 2.5 million.
Residential construction employment rose by 226,000 in May to 2.7 million, partially reversing a loss of 422,000 in April. Total construction industry (both residential and nonresidential) employment rebounded to 7 million in May.
Most economists were expecting an unemployment rate closer to 20%, given the large number of weekly unemployment insurance claims filed over the past month.
After widespread job losses in all the major sectors in April, many sectors posted employment gains in May. Employment in leisure and hospitality, construction, education and health services, and retail trade had the largest gains in May, while government employment continued to decline sharply.