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The United States economy has added 162,000 jobs in August, with large gains in local government education and food services.

The unemployment rate remained unchanged, according to the monthly jobs report released by the US Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) on Friday.

The data was well above analysts’ expectations. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 56,000 gains, the Wall Street Journal forecast 53,000, and Bloomberg had forecast 55,000, following a loss of 23,000 in July.

Local government education, or public schools, accounted for nearly 42,000 of the jobs added as the 2026–27 school year begins across much of the US. Teachers typically fall off payrolls during the summer months when school is not in session.

Food service jobs also saw large increases, with the sector adding 59,000 jobs for the month of August compared with the month prior.

There were also gains in construction, which added 22,000 jobs, and healthcare, which added 12,000.

The information sector, which accounts for industries like data processing, web hosting, publishing, broadcasting and telecommunications, fell by 23,000, with notable layoffs at companies including Scripps TV and Zillow, which fall under the umbrella of these industries.

The financial activities sector, which accounts for industries like insurance, commercial banking and real estate, dropped by 12,000.

Mixed data

The data comes in sharp contrast to the ADP national employment report, which tracks private payrolls and found 38,000 jobs added across the US economy.

Meanwhile, the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report released on Tuesday revealed job openings were slightly changed, with 7.3 million in July, up from 7.2 million the previous month, while total separations fell to 5.1 million in July from 5.3 million in June.

The move in job gains comes ahead of the US Federal Reserve’s policy meeting later this month, where the central bank will vote on interest rates. Amid the job gains, CME Group’s FedWatch, which tracks the likelihood of monetary policy decisions, had a 60 percent chance of a 25 basis point rate increase to 3.75–4.00 percent, up from 49 percent on Thursday.

US President Donald Trump was quick to comment on the jobs report and push for rate cuts.

“Lower the interest rates because the U.S.A. is a much stronger credit than it was a short time ago!” he said in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.

He also ramped up threats to cut off trade with nations that the US has a deficit with if the central bank does not cut rates.

Despite a strong jobs report, US markets are trending downwards. The Nasdaq is down 0.2 percent, the Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 0.5 percent, and the S&P 500 is down 0.3 percent amid Trump’s comments.

Meanwhile, Canada released its jobs report amid the ongoing trade dispute with the US. The Canadian economy lost 41,700 jobs, according to Statistics Canada, with the unemployment rate holding steady at 6.4 percent.

“We expect the economy will continue struggling to create jobs in the near term as mounting headwinds from new US-Canada tariffs, greater uncertainty from a flare-up in the trade war, and the ongoing Iran conflict and a shrinking population weigh on hiring,” Tony Stillo, director of Canada Economics at Oxford Economics, said in a note provided to Al Jazeera.

The new series will see how the couple, former Made in Chelsea stars, adapt to family life, returning to work and going on new family adventures

Jamie Laing and Sophie Habboo are returning to Disney+ for a second series of their ‘Raising Chelsea’ series with new faces also joining the show.

Season one, which premiered on Disney+ in April, saw Sophie’s raw journey through pregnancy and the chaotic early days of welcoming their baby boy, Ziggy.

The new series will see how the couple, former Made in Chelsea stars, adapt to family life, returning to work and going on new family adventures.

In a joint statement, Jamie and Sophie said: “We were blown away by the response to the show and are so excited to keep sharing our journey. The experience of working with Disney+ for season one made it easy for us to say yes.

“We’ve always documented our lives over the years and continuing to do this on a bigger scale is just amazing. We hope that fans and viewers carry on enjoying our honesty as we continue to navigate raising Ziggy, together with balancing our family and professional lives. We can’t wait to bring you in more.”

Together with the return of the couple’s mums Penny Baines and Sarah Wigley, the second series will also feature Sophie’s sister Georgia Habboo, and Jamie’s best-friend, Oliver Proudlock.

It is produced by the award-winning production company behind critically acclaimed series ‘Coleen Rooney: The Real Wagatha Story’ and the EMMY nominated ‘Pamela, A Love Story.’

Sean Doyle, VP, Unscripted, Disney+ EMEA, said: “We loved Jamie and Sophie’s pregnancy story in season one and meeting baby Ziggy, and we can’t wait to follow their family in season two.”

Disney+ also announced this week that another former Made In Chelsea star will get a new documentary on their streaming platform.

Documentary makers followed Spencer Matthews at the end of 2025 as he took on his greatest challenge yet – seven full distance 140-mile triathlons across all seven continents in just 21 days.

The feature-length documentary has the working title ‘Breaking Spencer Matthews’ and Spencer said: “This challenge has become about far more than completing seven Ironman’s across all seven continents. What began as an extreme physical pursuit has evolved into a journey of self-discovery and transformation that has tested me in ways I could never have anticipated. There were moments of exhaustion, doubt, and struggle where I had to dig deeper than ever before, treading a fine line between one of the greatest adventures imaginable and life-threatening danger.

“I hope this film inspires people to question their own limits and to see that what feels impossible, physically, emotionally, or personally can often be the very thing that transforms us.”

ENDS