Trump’s First Jobs Report Is Great News For Administration
A newly released jobs report brings encouraging news for President Donald Trump, highlighting a resurgence in manufacturing jobs and significant benefits for native-born workers.
“Today’s jobs report shows American manufacturing is on the rebound thanks to President Donald J. Trump and his administration,” the White House stated in a press release.
According to the statement, “The country gained 10,000 manufacturing jobs in President Trump’s first full month in office — a swift turnaround after losing an average of 9,000 manufacturing jobs per month, or 111,000 total, in the final year of the Biden Administration.”
The release further elaborated that “The rebound in manufacturing jobs was led by the automobile sector, which gained 8,900 new jobs in February — after losing 27,300 auto jobs in Biden’s final year — showing that firms are reshoring production and positively responding to President Trump’s trade policies.”
Additionally, the press release pointed to data supporting this resurgence, stating that “The manufacturing turnaround has been confirmed by S&P Global’s own U.S. manufacturing survey, which surged last month to its highest level since June 2022, and the Manufacturing ISM Report On Business, which returned to expansion territory after 26 consecutive months of contraction.”
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt underscored the significance of these findings, describing the report as a major win for the administration.
“In one month under President Trump, the American economy is soaring back to greatness after the economic calamity left by Joe Biden. The manufacturing industry is already rebounding as there were 9,000 new auto jobs created — the most auto jobs added in 15 months! Under President Trump, the private sector is leading the way — 93% of the job gains in February were in the private sector. This is great news for American workers and families. The Trump Administration will continue to work hard to implement pro-growth policies and push Congress to enact the Trump Economic Agenda,” she stated.
The report detailed that the automobile manufacturing sector alone saw an increase of 8,900 jobs in February, marking a stark contrast to the loss of roughly 27,000 jobs in the previous year under former President Joe Biden.
Furthermore, an overwhelming 93 percent of the newly added jobs originated from the private sector rather than government positions, which analysts attribute to President Trump’s deregulatory measures enacted through executive orders since assuming office on January 20.
Native-born workers saw particularly positive employment gains, as Bureau of Labor Statistics data indicated that 284,000 native-born workers secured jobs last month, while 87,000 foreign-born workers experienced job losses. Additionally, 367,000 native-born individuals joined the workforce, compared to a decline of 66,000 among foreign-born workers.
By contrast, January’s employment figures, which were the last under the Biden administration, showed fewer job gains than anticipated, as the Federal Reserve continued to monitor labor market trends and inflation before making any interest rate adjustments, according to Fox Business.
The unemployment rate, however, stood at 4 percent, which was lower than economists had predicted, marking another positive indicator for Trump.
According to the report, “The number of jobs added in the prior two months were both revised, with job creation in November revised up by 49,000 from a gain of 212,000 to 261,000, while December was revised up by 51,000 from a gain of 256,000 to 307,000. Taken together, 100,000 more jobs were created in those two months than previously reported.”
Government data indicated that while the private sector was projected to add 141,000 jobs, the actual number stood at 111,000. However, revisions in the upcoming weeks could adjust these figures upward.
Wage growth also provided positive news, as average earnings increased by 0.5 percent from the prior month and showed a 4.1 percent rise compared to the previous year.
Sector-specific employment data revealed that the retail industry added 34,300 jobs in January, including 31,200 positions in general merchandise stores and 5,300 in furniture retail. Conversely, the electronics and appliance retail sector saw a decline of 7,000 jobs.
In addition, “Social assistance added 22,300 jobs, led by individual and family services (+20,100) with gains also occurring in community food and housing, emergency and other relief services (+4,400). The sector grew by an average of 20,000 jobs a month last year,” the report stated.
Meanwhile, the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industry experienced a setback, shedding 7,700 jobs in January, with the losses primarily concentrated in mining support activities. “The sector experienced little net change in 2024,” the report concluded.