The US labor market picked up in March as employers showed signs of resilience amid the US-Israel war in Iran.
After an extraordinary contraction in February, employers added 178,000 jobs last month, ahead of economists’ expectations of about 70,000.
The unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, according to data from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. In February, the economy lost 133,000 jobs, according to revised figures. Job figures for January were revised up, from 126,000 to 160,000. With revisions, total employment in January and February is 7,000 lower than previously reported. .
Previous data painted a mixed picture of the US labor market, which economists say has been in a static “low-fire, low-hire” state, where both layoffs and new hires are down.
Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that employers announced 217,362 job cuts in the first quarter of 2026 – the lowest total for that period since 2022. But hiring in February slowed to a six-year low, according to data released earlier this week, with dips seen in construction and leisure and hospitality.