June jobs miss: payroll growth slows to 57,000 as unemployment ticks down

U.S. nonfarm payrolls rose by 57,000 in June, well below economists’ 113,000 forecast, while the unemployment rate dipped to 4.2% and the labor-force participation rate held at 61.5%. Gains were led by professional/business services, social assistance, and healthcare, but leisure and hospitality fell by 61,000 after May’s surge; April and May payrolls were revised down by a combined 74,000. The report signals a cooling labor market as the year heads toward mid-year.