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US jobs growth strong but wage growth moderates; global food prices ease again; JPN births slump; AU bottom-end pay to jump; gold down and oil up
Not only did the US Congress approve the debt-limit compromise, their labour market showed much more strength than expected in May. At a headline level, the US economy created +339,000 jobs in May (seasonally adjusted), compared to market expectations of +190,000 and following an upwardly revised +294,000 in April. Job gains occurred across the board in professional and business services, government, health care, construction, transportation and warehousing, and social assistance. However, that expansion is drawing more people back into their labour market even faster, so their unemployment rate rose to a 7-month ... (full story)