U.S. Labor Market Faces Challenges Amid Trade Policies and Immigration Measures

According to BlockBeats, the U.S. labor market is experiencing difficulties as initial jobless claims decreased last week, but hiring remains sluggish. The U.S. Department of Labor reported a seasonally adjusted decline of 14,000 in initial jobless claims, bringing the total to 218,000 for the week ending September 20. Despite companies stockpiling workers, they are hesitant to increase their workforce due to uncertainties stemming from protectionist trade policies, which have raised average U.S. tariffs to their highest level in a century. The weak demand for labor has undermined the resilience of the job market, prompting the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates again last week. Additionally, immigration measures under U.S. President Donald Trump's administration have reduced labor supply, further hindering employment growth. Continuing jobless claims for the week ending September 13 fell by 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 1.926 million. In August, the average duration of unemployment rose from 24.1 weeks to 24.5 weeks, marking the longest period since April 2022. The unemployment rate increased to 4.3%, the highest in nearly four years.