The Jobs Slump Is Here: What it Means for the Stock Market and the Fed

Several months ago, stocks briefly crashed over concerns about a trade war and a slowing economy. Now, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) is trading at an all-time high even as recent economic data makes it clear the labor market is grinding to a halt.Friday's employment report showed the U.S. added just 22,000 jobs in August, missing expectations of 75,000 net new jobs. The report continued a recent streak of weak jobs growth and included a downward revision of 27,000 jobs over the prior two months. The economy lost 13,000 jobs in June and gained 79,000 in July, meaning that job growth has averaged less than 30,000 over the last four months, significantly less than what's considered a healthy job market (at least 100,000 job gains per month).Image source: Getty Images.Continue readingWeiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei MotleyFool