Two Important Lessons from Job Creation in 2019

by Mischa Fisher, Chief Economist | January 2020
  • December 2019 job creation was 145,000
  • The unemployment rate remained unchanged at a very low 3.5%
  • Construction employment’s share of total employment ticked up to
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

This morning marks the close of 2019’s job creation streak, and also serves as a frist glimpse at what to expect in 2020. December’s numbers – and 2019 collectively – should provide two lessons going into 2020:

  1. The economy, job creation, and consumer sentiment have been less sensitive to global macro developments than we thought at the beginning of 2019
  2. A predictable and gradual deceleration in growth is expected, a recession is not. So even as 2020 gets off to a rocky start geopolitically, most industries should continue to see moderate growth in 2020, including both remodeling specifically and home services more broadly.