WASHINGTON —

The U.S. labor market is showing signs of cooling, with only 22,000 positions added last month, far below expectations, and the unemployment rate climbing to 4.3%, the highest level since the pandemic.

Labor Department revisions also showed June's job total was negative, with employers cutting 13,000 positions, another first since the pandemic.

"U.S. labor market deterioration intensified in August,’' Scott Anderson, chief U.S. economist at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a commentary, noting that hiring was “slumping dangerously close to stall speed. This raises the risk of a harder landing for consumer spending and the economy in the months ahead."

Factories and construction companies, which often rely on immigrant labor, are leading the decline.

White House Economic

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