Non-farm payrolls increased by 177,000 jobs last month after rising by a downwardly revised 185,000 in March, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its employment report on Friday.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 130,000 jobs added last month after a previously reported 228,000 advance in March. Estimates ranged from 25,000 to 195,000 jobs added.
The US economy needs to create roughly 100,000 jobs per month to keep up with growth in the working-age population. The unemployment rate held steady at 4.2 per cent.
The report is backward-looking and it is too early for the labour market to show the impact of Trump's on-and-off again tariffs policy.
A flood of imports as businesses tried to get ahead of tariffs weighed on the economy in the first quarter.
Trump's "Liberation Day" tariff announcement ushered in sweeping duties on most imports from the United States' trade partners, including boosting duties on Chinese goods to 145 per cent, sparking a trade war with Beijing and tightening financial conditions.
Trump later delayed higher reciprocal tariffs for 90 days, which economists said was essentially a pause on the whole economy as it left businesses in a state of paralysis and risked a recession if there was no clarity soon.
The labour market continues to show resilience amid a reluctance by employers to let go of workers after struggling to find labour during and after the COVID-19 pandemic, but warning signs are accumulating.
Business sentiment continues to plummet, which economists expect will at some point give way to layoffs. Already, airlines have pulled their 2025 financial forecasts, citing uncertainty over spending on non-essential travel because of tariffs.
Amid the swirling uncertainty, the Federal Reserve is expected to keep its benchmark overnight interest rate in the 4.25 per cent to 4.50 per cent range next week. Economists expect companies will reduce hours before resorting to mass layoffs.
Most economists anticipate the tariff drag could become evident by summer in the so-called hard data, including employment and inflation reports.
with AP
