September 1999 — 1999-09-03

Advance copies of this statement are made available to the press under lock-up conditions with the explicit understanding that the data are embargoed until 8:30 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time. Good morning. I am pleased to have this opportunity to discuss the August employment and unemployment estimates that we released this morning. The unemployment rate, at 4.2 percent in August, was little changed over the month, and has been either 4.2 or 4.3 percent each month since March. Nonfarm payroll employment, as measured by our establishment survey, rose a modest 124,000 in August, following a strong increase of 338,000 in July. Over these 2 months, job growth averaged 231,000, compared with an average monthly increase of 210,000 for the first half of 1999. In August, job losses in the goods-producing sector of the economy totaled 95,000. Manufacturing employment declined by 63,000 (after seasonal adjustment). This followed an increase of 51,000 in July, as revised.