The job loss was widespread across industries, but the biggest percentage declines were a 4.0 percent drop in jobs in motor vehicles, 2.6 percent in apparel, and 1.6 percent in lumber and wood products. The first two are consistent with trade data showing surging imports, as well as weakening car sales, while the third figure should not be surprising given the slowdown in construction in recent months. Still, the rapid pace of job loss in manufacturing should raise concerns for the future. The 3-month employment diffusion index for manufacturing, which gives the percentage of industries that intend to add jobs over this period, fell to 34.2 percent, its lowest level since the early nineties. At the very least, this pace of job decline implies a continuing rise in the trade deficit, if not a general slowing of the economy.
Wage growth continues to remain moderate.
The average hourly wage has risen at a 3.8 percent annual rate over the last quarter, bringing the wage gain over the last year to 3.6 percent. This is about even with the rate of inflation, indicating that workers are receiving almost no benefit from the extraordinary growth in productivity over this period.