CWRI

Annual revisions to labor force and nonfarm payroll jobs estimates have been published. Those revisions, based on more complete data, indicate the unemployment rate was little changed throughout 2017 and nonfarm payroll job growth was slightly stronger than previously thought. Monthly data cited in this brief is seasonally adjusted. Unemployment Rate Preliminary estimates, released on a monthly basis throughout the year, indicated that unemployment reached lows of 3.0 percent in the spring and at the end of the year, and highs of 3.7 and 3.8 percent in the summer. Revised rates indicate unemployment was not quite as low or high – 3.3 percent in the spring and 3.5 percent in the summer, ending the year at 3.1 percent in December. Given margins of error in the survey sample, there was essentially no change in the unemployment rate last year. Revised estimates now indicate that unemployment was below 4 percent for 25 consecutive months through December 2017. This is the lon