U.S. payroll growth slowed sharply in June, adding only 57,000 jobs

Markets U.S. payroll growth slowed sharply in June, adding only 57,000 jobs This morning's data could slow market expectations for a Fed rate hike as soon as this summer or early Fall. By Stephen Alpher , Helene Braun Jul 2, 2026, 12:37 p.m. 1 min read Make preferred on Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Make preferred on U.S. jobs data for June (Eric Prouzet/Unsplash) Summary Show U.S. job growth slowed sharply in June, with 57,000 jobs added versus expectations for 110,000 and well below May’s revised 129,000 gain. The unemployment rate edged down to 4.2%, slightly better than forecasts and May’s 4.3% reading. Weaker labor data could cool expectations for aggressive Federal Reserve rate hikes in 2026, contributing to a drop in bitcoin prices after the report. U.S. jobs growth disappointed last month, with the data likely to set back market expectations of a Federal Reserve rate hike as soon as this summer or early Fall. The U.S. added 57,000 jobs in June, according to the government's Nonfarm Payrolls Report released Thursday morning. That's lower than the 110,000 forecasted by economists and significantly below May's 129,000 gain (revised from an originally reported 172,000). The unemployment rate came in at 4.2% versus an expected 4.3% and May's 4.3%. Up strongly ahead of the report, bitcoin BTC $ 60,449.94 held above $61,000, higher by 4% over the past 24 hours. The U-turn in interest rate expectations has been one of the macro stories of the year. With President Trump's well-advertised desires for lower interest rates and his picking a new Fed chair, the only question for markets months ago was how often the U.S. central bank would be trimming rates in 2026. In part thanks to surging energy prices, though, inflation turned upward in the first half of the year, and new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh surprised many, leading the Fed to a very hawkish conclusion at its policy meeting two weeks ago. The only question for markets ahead of this morning's data turned to how often the U.S. central bank will be hiking rates in 2026. Breaking News Related Assets Bitcoin $ 60,449.94 2.63 % Latest Crypto News 1 Three years after MiCA became law, Europe's crypto framework is undergoing a rethink 43 minutes ago 2 Warsh's comments set the stage for U.S. jobs data to ignite bitcoin, gold rally 51 minutes ago 3 Smaller tokens lead as bitcoin, sol rally in 'first real bounce of the selloff' 1 hour ago 4 Bitcoin rises 4% to above $61,000 as inflation fears soften 2 hours ago 5 ChatGPT developer OpenAI said to discuss offering U.S. government a 5% stake: FT 2 hours ago 6 Live markets: bitcoin rises above $61,000 as U.S. jobs data for June disappoints 2 hours ago 7 Metaplanet buys another $170 million of bitcoin expanding treasury to 43,000 BTC 3 hours ago 8 Taiko fully restores cross-chain bridge just 10 days after a $1.7 million hack 4 hours ago 9 Solana launches onchain governance and sets entry fee at 100,000 SOL staked 5 hours ago 10 XRP edges higher as whale activity rises while retail traders stay cautious 6 hours ago Latest Research Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness Building the Zcash Machine: Tachyon and Quantum Readiness Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold. By CoinDesk Research Jun 30, 2026 Commissioned by GenZcash Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold. Why it matters : Zcash’s Tachyon upgrade aims to scale shielded payments, improve quantum readiness, and test whether its funding, security, and governance can hold. View Full Report More From Markets Smaller tokens lead as bitcoin, sol rally in 'first real bounce of the selloff' Bitcoin rises 4% to above $61,000 as inflation fears soften Metaplanet buys another $170 million of bitcoin expanding treasury to 43,000 BTC More From Bitcoin Three years after MiCA became law, Europe's crypto framework is undergoing a rethink Warsh's comments set the stage for U.S. jobs data to ignite bitcoin, gold rally Smaller tokens lead as bitcoin, sol rally in 'first real bounce of the selloff'