Economy Adds 160,000 Jobs in April, Unemployment Holds At 5 Percent

Published May 6, 2016 at 12:33 PM CDT

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An office worker sits at his desk at a bank in Washington, DC on May 5, 2016.
An increase in layoffs pushed US claims for unemployment insurance higher last week but the jobs market remains tight, Labor Department data showed. (Andrew Caballero/AFP/Getty Images) — An office worker sits at his desk at a bank in Washington, DC on May 5, 2016. An increase in layoffs pushed US claims for unemployment insurance higher last week but the jobs market remains tight, Labor Department data showed. (Andrew Caballero/AFP/Getty Images)

The Labor Department reported today that the US economy added 160,000 jobs in April, the weakest increase in seven months. The number fell below expectations from economists, and the unemployment rate held steady at 5 percent. But the report showed that wages rose 2.5 percent from a year earlier. Here & Now’s Jeremy Hobson talks with Michael Regan of Bloomberg Gadfly about the numbers and how they could impact upcoming decisions on rate increases from the Federal Reserve.

Guest

Michael Regan, columnist for Bloomberg Gadfly. He tweets @Reganonymous.