Instant display: March payroll in the United States bounces more than expected

(Reuters) – US employment growth accelerated from a 17-month low in March, as milder weather boosted activity in sectors such as construction, could allay fears of a marked slowdown in economic growth in the first quarter.

The worsening labor shortage and the lingering effects of the tightening of financial markets at the end of the year, however, left employment gains below the steady pace of 2018. The monthly employment report for Labor Department released Friday also showed a slight upward revision for meager job gains in February.

KEY POINTS:

** Non-agricultural payroll in March in the United States +196,000 compared to consensus +180,000; Revised in February at +33,000 instead of 20,000

** March Labor Market Activity Rate of 63.0% vs. 63.2% in February

** Unemployment rate in March unchanged at 3.8%, as expected

** Average hourly earnings of all private sector workers in March in the United States + 0.1%, below consensus for + 0.3% and in February unreviewed + 0.4%

MARKET REACTION:

STOCKS: S & P e-mini futures add light gains and were up 0.32%

BONDS: Decline in 2 and 10 Year Treasury Bills Returns

FOREX: The dollar index rises a little higher

TARIFF FUTURES: federal fund contract for January 2020, roughly unchanged

COMMENTS:

WIN THIN, WORLD DIRECTOR OF MONEY STRATEGY, BROWN BROTHERS HARRIMAN, NEW YORK

"It's a nice mixed record. The title was a little better than expected, February had been slightly revised upwards, but the average hourly wage was obviously a big disappointment. The key for the Fed is that it needs to see inflation before it can get back on its feet and that the inflationary pressure lies in additional wage pressures, which we simply have not seen. It's a bit of an attempt at recovery but it did not really take off as we expected now that we are almost at full employment. So this is a mixed report, I think that the market is bothering somehow. What I remember is that it essentially means that it remains stable as and when.

RICK MECKLER, PARTNER, CHERRY LANE INVESTMENTS, NEW VERNON, NEW JERSEY

"It's a pretty high number. It's slightly higher than expected. It's certainly in the range of what people had planned. This is probably about the current level of the market. The key for this market has been continued growth with no higher interest rates. A figure that indicates continued growth but is not high enough to force the Fed to raise rates is what the market is looking for. "

"We have had six days in a row, so the question is whether this has not already been incorporated into current levels."

"The real objective of this market remains the negotiations with China. This is the only exceptional piece that could really take the market to new heights. "

"Investors have already taken into account the fact that the economy seems to be on the right track. They are particularly encouraged by the fact that the Fed does not seem interested in raising rates, but by the president who pushes them so aggressively to not raise rates. "

"The mystery is a little why the growth of wages is not stronger. It is difficult to fully understand the lack of vigor of hourly earnings. Maybe there will be a late reaction to that … or maybe it says something about the ability of a global economy to keep wages under control in any country. "

JJ KINAHAN, STRATEGIST IN CHIEF, TD AMERITRADE, CHICAGO

"It seems to be back to normal. Obviously, you've seen a rebound in a lot of things and it felt more normal. Health care has created many jobs and we continue to find that professional and technical services – these have been the two strongest sectors of the job market over the last year – and that They continue to behave very well. Last month, some of this activity may have been weather related. The 27,000 jobs created in food services and drinking places probably contributed to the credibility of this company. In the same vein, the figure that disappoints me a little is that of construction, because if we rebounded, we should also have returned to jobs in the construction sector, given the improved conditions weather.

"The wage increases were lukewarm, that's the best way to say it and the participation rate is slightly lower, so we'll see if that comes back. (The futures have gone up) because we wanted to make sure we were going to bounce back, that it was an anomaly that we had seen in the last jobs report and that it was even better than expected. I do not think that changes the position of the Fed, it simply says: we are on the path we all thought to be. It's a good thing. "

JOE MANIMBO, SENIOR MARKET ANALYST, WESTERN UNION BUSINESS SOLUTIONS, WASHINGTON

"A mixed jobs report but overall very solid. The strong comeback of hiring last month should help dispel fears of recession. Nevertheless, weaker wage growth suggests that the December Fed rate hike may be the last of the current cycle, a vision that will not help the dollar. "