February Jobs Report Shows a Strong Gain of 678,000

Job growth accelerated in February as declining COVID-19 cases brought customers back to businesses and allowed more workers to return to the office. U.S. employers reported a total of 678,000 jobs added in February and a 3.8% drop in the nationwide unemployment rate, surpassing economists’ forecasts for the second straight month, according to The New York Times.

Employers have added at least 400,000 jobs each month since May 2021 despite the ebb and flow of the pandemic, the longest streak of strong gains on record. Forecasters are now looking ahead to a supercharged recovery with even more hiring on the horizon, especially as states lift mask mandates and ease yearlong restrictions.

The data was collected in mid-February, before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which roiled global financial markets and caused a sharp increase in energy prices. Analysts say the United States is less vulnerable than Europe to the economic effects of the crisis, but warn that a prolonged conflict will have global repercussions that are hard to predict.

But so far, at least, the labor market recovery has overcome every obstacle. Job openings are near a record high. Layoffs are at an all-time low. And hiring has remained strong in the ebb and flow of successive waves of the pandemic — employers have added at least 400,000 jobs every month since May, the longest such streak on record.

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