S&P 500 posts worst week since September as Trump tariffs rattle markets

The latest jobs report released Friday showed the construction industry increased its pace of hiring while unemployment for workers in the industry also rose.

Data from the Labor Department showed that construction firms added 19,000 jobs in February, following a small gain of 4,000 in January. This marked the strongest month of growth since the third quarter of 2024.

However, this growth came alongside a rise in the construction unemployment rate, which increased to 7.2% compared to the overall unemployment rate of 4.1% for the month.

“The sizable jump in the industry unemployment rate indicates that the labor supply can accommodate ongoing hiring,” Associated Builders and Contractors chief economist Anirban Basu said.

Basu also warned that the decline in government roles driven by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency may have further implications for the construction sector.

“Federal job and spending cuts, as well as elevated uncertainty, could eventually diminish construction activity at the margins, but those effects have yet to appear in these employment data,” he said.