The latest jobs report wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either. Data released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed the U.S. payrolls grew by 151,000 in February. That's below a Dow Jones consensus estimate of 170,000. Unemployment ticked higher to 4.1% from 4%. Stock futures initially popped following the release of the U.S. jobs report as hopes grew for multiple rate cuts from the Federal Reserve. However, they quickly gave up those gains and were lower heading into the open . Here's what people on Wall Street have to say about the latest report: Lindsay Rosner, head of multi sector fixed income investing at Goldman Sachs Asset Management: "To sum it up: today's print wasn't as bad as feared. The payrolls growth surprised slightly to the downside and the unemployment rate ticked up justifying the momentum that's been building for a resumption in the Fed's cutting cycle." Chris Rupkey, chief economist at FWDBonds: "Migration policies and import tariffs are going to bring down the level of private jobs sooner or later. Looks like it is happening sooner. ... If these were good policies coming out of Washington, the stock market would not be cratering on each new bit of tariff news this week on again off again. The only reason stocks are doing better is they believe the soft patch in payroll jobs means the Fed will need to cut rates two or three times later this year." Joe Gaffoglio, CEO at Mutual of America Capital Management: "February's weak jobs report presents a challenge for the Federal Reserve as it navigates the timing of future interest rate cuts. The labor market is showing signs of weakness with hiring across sectors, but inflation still remains sticky above the Fed's 2% target. Deteriorating indicators like hiring intentions, new job listings and temporary staffing suggest a potential slowdown in employment growth. Even with these conditions, we don't expect the Fed to cut rates at its next meeting or even in the next few months, but if the job market continues to weaken they will need to take action." Bryce Doty, senior portfolio manager at Sit Investment: "The economy is still producing jobs or at least filling open positions with 151k jobs in February. But unemployment ticked higher to 4.1%. Average hourly earning is running at an annual rate of 4.0% which net of a typical production rate of 2.0% you net the fed's target inflation of 2.0%. Essentially this report provides zero clarity for bond investors. You can argue the Fed will keep rates high or you could say this report means they may need to cut sooner than previously expected. The downshift in participation rate is concerning and something to keep an eye on. We will be digging into the details of the decline in the participation rate." Kyle Chapman, FX markets analyst at Ballinger Group: "A cocktail of shocks is being thrown at the US economy: the end of Biden-era stimulus, historic policy uncertainty curtailing hiring and investment decisions, trade wars, and DOGE's assault on the federal government and its contractors. February was too soon to see the full effect, but it is very likely that they will over time. The only way out is for Trump to give us some certainty or for confidence to rebound, and that is not something I see coming any time soon." Byron Anderson, head of fixed income at Laffer Tengler Investments: "We are not putting much stock in the jobs report at the moment. Today's data was mixed at best, but we still have no clarity on the economy moving forward with the Trump turmoil. The longer we have chaos and turmoil from Trump, the higher the probability that we will eventually have data trend negative. Markets, businesses, and consumers do not like uncertainty and that means increased volatility." Mark Malek, CIO at Siebert Financial: "Markets fear uncertainty more than they fear bad news—25% tariffs are easier to price in than 'maybe 10%, maybe more, maybe less.' The Trump Put is real, but its effectiveness is wearing thin as traders start questioning the strategy. Tariff-driven volatility isn't new, but this week felt like 2018 all over again—except worse. The administration's messaging isn't helping—markets aren't buying the idea that tariffs cause 'transitory inflation.' The week confirmed that tariffs remain a wildcard for market confidence, and traders are exhausted from the back-and-forth. Markets closed painfully in the red, even after the President backtracked some of the tariffs. It was official. The markets had contracted Customs Chaos Disorder." — CNBC's Yun Li, Lisa Kailai Han, Alex Harring and Michelle Fox contributed reporting.
