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United States Unemployment Rate
United States's unemployment rate measures the percentage of the labour force actively seeking work but not currently employed. It is published monthly by the national statistics office.
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Why Unemployment Rate matters for USD
The unemployment rate is a cornerstone of the Federal Reserve's dual or single mandate. A tightening labour market signals wage pressure and potential inflation, pulling rate expectations higher and supporting the usd.
How to interpret this series
A lower-than-expected unemployment rate is typically usd-positive because it implies a tight labour market and possible wage inflation, consistent with hawkish central bank policy. A rising unemployment rate increases rate-cut odds.
Historical Unemployment Rate
Source: BLS. Cadence: Monthly. Unit: %. History from 1999-01-31 (27.4 years).
Recent announcements
Each release gets a durable child page so data, forecast, previous value, and raw fields can be cited directly.
Related United States indicators
Move to adjacent releases in the same macro category.
Average Hourly Earnings
Measures the change in the price businesses pay for labor.
Average Weekly Earnings / Wages
Measures nominal wage growth.
Employment Level
Total number of employed persons.
Full-Time Employment
Number of persons employed full-time.
Initial Jobless Claims
Weekly initial unemployment insurance claims.
Job Openings
Total number of unfilled job positions, a key indicator of labor market demand and tightness.
Labor Force Participation Rate
Ratio of the labor force to the working-age population.
NAIRU (Natural Rate of Unemployment)
Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment — the estimated unemployment rate consistent with stable inflation, published by the Congressional Budget Office.
Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP)
Number of workers in the U.S. excluding farm workers.
Part-Time Employment
Number of persons employed part-time.
Common questions
Editorial context for readers and AI agents using this page as a cited country indicator source.
What is the natural rate of unemployment for United States?
NAIRU (Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment) varies over time. Rates well below NAIRU suggest the economy is running hot and inflation pressures may build.