美国国家公共电台 NPR--U.S. employers added 253,000 jobs in April, Labor Department reports

U.S. employers added 253,000 jobs in April, Labor¹ Department reports

Transcript²

The jobs figure is significantly higher than most forecasters expected. But the outlook for the labor market remains³ uncertain due to banking⁴ turmoil⁵ and rising interest rates.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

There are a lot of speed bumps in the path of the U.S. economy right now. Inflation for one, rising interest rates two. Also add that - the recent turmoil in the banking system, and yet the job market is holding up well. The Labor Department said this morning that U.S. employers added 253,000 jobs in April. That's more than the month before and more than most forecasters were expecting. NPR's Scott Horsley is here with all the details.

Scott, doesn't seem like the job market's slowing down. So what's going on?

SCOTT HORSLEY, BYLINE⁶: Yeah, it sure doesn't. Keep in mind, we've added a huge number of jobs over the last three years. And after a blockbuster month of hiring in January, we did see some slowdown in February and March. Now, though, it looks like the job market got a second wind in April. Even construction companies and factories managed to add a few jobs last month, despite the pinch of rising interest rates. And service industries keep adding a lot of jobs. Julia Pollak, who's chief economist⁷ for the job search website ZipRecruiter, says that's thanks to robust⁸ demand for things like travel and eating out.

JULIA POLLAK: Strong hiring for airlines and hotels and restaurants is largely offsetting⁹ the weakness elsewhere.

HORSLEY: The unemployment rate dipped last month to just 3.4%. That matches the lowest level since 1969. And unemployment among African Americans fell to 4.7%, which is a new record low. Despite all this good news, there are some signs of cooling in the job market. Job openings have been coming down. Layoffs¹⁰ have been inching up. And those job gains for February and March were revised down this morning by a total of 149,000.

MART?NEZ: Are employers still seeing a lot of turnover¹¹?

HORSLEY: Some, but not as much as they had been. The number of people quitting jobs voluntarily has come down a bit, which could be a sign that workers are less confident about finding a new job if they quit, or maybe they just don't want to be the newest hire at a company if they think there might be layoffs on the horizon. There was also some discouraging news in this morning's report. In the first three months of the year, we saw a big influx¹² of new and returning workers, people coming off the sidelines and looking for jobs. Some of those gains were reversed last month when 43,000 people dropped out of the job market. Wage growth also picked up a bit. Average wages were 4.4% higher in April than a year ago. Bigger wage gains are good for workers, of course, but they don't help the Federal Reserve in its battle against inflation.

MART?NEZ: The recent banking system fallout, Scott - how does that affect the jobs picture?

HORSLEY: It's definitely something to keep an eye on. We've now had three big banks fail in the last two months, and that's making other lenders nervous. As a result, they're expected to be more cautious about making loans. We were seeing some tightening¹³ of credit conditions even before Silicon¹⁴ Valley Bank went under in March, and it's certainly accelerated since then. Pollak says it might take a few months, but that cutback in credit is likely to have ripple¹⁵ effects in the job market.

POLLAK: If small businesses can't borrow, they won't be able to open new locations, to add new equipment. So we could see a pullback in small business hiring.

HORSLEY: You know, the credit crunch¹⁶ acts a little bit like an extra hike in interest rate from the Federal Reserves. It slows the economy down. Unlike the Fed's move, though, which is calibrated¹⁷ and deliberate, the credit crunch is unplanned and unpredictable. So we'll be watching to see, you know, whether the effect on the job market is a smooth, gradual slowdown or something more abrupt¹⁸ and jarring. But certainly for the moment, it seems like the job market is pretty resilient.

MART?NEZ: NPR's Scott Horsley.

Scott, thanks.

HORSLEY: You're very welcome.

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

4 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

5 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

8 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

9 offsetting   

n.偏置法v.抵消( offset的现在分词 )；补偿；（为了比较的目的而）把…并列（或并置）；为（管道等）装支管

参考例句：

• Dealers, having concluded a forward contract, should always hedge with an offsetting contract. 外汇经营商在签订了一项远期合同之后总是应进行套头交易签订一项相抵合同。 来自辞典例句
• Where does Germany think offsetting shifts into greater external deficits might occur? 在德国看来，这么大的外部赤字应该转移到哪里？ 来自互联网

10 layoffs   

临时解雇( layoff的名词复数 )； 停工，停止活动

参考例句：

• Textile companies announced 2000 fresh layoffs last week. 各纺织公司上周宣布再次裁员两千人。
• Stock prices broke when the firm suddenly announced layoffs. 当公司突然宣布裁员时，股票价格便大跌

11 turnover   

n.人员流动率，人事变动率；营业额，成交量

参考例句：

• The store greatly reduced the prices to make a quick turnover.这家商店实行大减价以迅速周转资金。
• Our turnover actually increased last year.去年我们的营业额竟然增加了。

12 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

13 tightening   

上紧，固定，紧密

参考例句：

• Make sure the washer is firmly seated before tightening the pipe. 旋紧水管之前，检查一下洗衣机是否已牢牢地固定在底座上了。
• It needs tightening up a little. 它还需要再收紧些。

14 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

15 ripple   

n.涟波，涟漪，波纹，粗钢梳；vt.使...起涟漪，使起波纹； vi.呈波浪状，起伏前进

参考例句：

• The pebble made a ripple on the surface of the lake.石子在湖面上激起一个涟漪。
• The small ripple split upon the beach.小小的涟漪卷来，碎在沙滩上。

16 crunch   

n.关键时刻；艰难局面；v.发出碎裂声

参考例句：

• If it comes to the crunch they'll support us.关键时刻他们是会支持我们的。
• People who crunch nuts at the movies can be very annoying.看电影时嘎吱作声地嚼干果的人会使人十分讨厌。

17 calibrated   

v.校准( calibrate的过去式和过去分词 )；使标准化；使合标准；测量（枪的）口径

参考例句：

• Power pesticide dusters can be calibrated and used to apply pertilizer. 动力杀虫剂可以调整用来施肥。 来自辞典例句
• The flexible diaphragm is connected to a plat cantilever-calibrated spring. 柔韧的膜片一扁平的悬臂校正弹簧相连。 来自辞典例句

18 abrupt   

adj.突然的，意外的；唐突的，鲁莽的

参考例句：

• The river takes an abrupt bend to the west.这河突然向西转弯。
• His abrupt reply hurt our feelings.他粗鲁的回答伤了我们的感情。