the us labor market is hot and continues to show tight conditions posing a difficult dilemma for the federal reserve regarding whether to raise interest rates further or hit the pause button nonfarm payrolls increased by 339000 in may far exceeding economists expectations of 190000 and rising from aprils upwardly revised 294000 increase the bureau of labor statistics reported friday the unemployment rate advanced from 34 to 37 contrary to forecasts of an increase to 35 the average hourly wage increased by 03 monthovermonth in line with expectations of 03 but slowing from the prior months gain of 04 annual wage growth was 43 falling short of both expectations and the prior figure of 44   the us economy added 339000 nonfarm payrolls in may surpassing expectations of 190000 according to trading economics and higher than the previous months 294000 surge the mays figure was in line with the average monthly gain of 341000 over the prior six months   the change in total nonfarm payroll employment for march was revised by 52000 jobs from 165000 to 217000 and the change for april was revised higher by 41000 from 253000 to 294000   the unemployment rate edged 03 higher to 37 in may contrary to forecasts of an increase to 35 the number of unemployed persons rose by 440000 to 61 million up from 57 million in april   average hourly earnings on us private nonfarm payrolls increased by 11 cents or 03 reaching 3344 in may 2023 matching market expectations   employment growth in leisure and hospitality continued to remain strong in may up by 48000   construction added 25000 jobs while employment in transportation and warehousing increased by 24000   read now freight recession 5 stocks to watch as transportation costs plummet to precovid levels   inflation and labor market conditions are crucial economic indicators tracked by the federal reserve to assess monetary policy decisions   this employment report is particularly important because it is the last major economic report before june 14 when the may inflation rate and fomc policy decision will be released   strong employment growth and steady wage growth may convince the federal reserve to maintain a more restrictive stance for an extended period of time   following the publication of the employment report investors revised their expectations for a june fed rate increase increasing the probability from 20 to 27   futures on the sp 500 index as monitored by the spdr sp 500 etf trust  rose   the yield on the 10year treasury note increased by 3 basis points to 363 while the yield on the 2year note increased by 6 basis points to 44  the us dollar index remained unchanged read now us stock futures signal strong open on budget bill cheer ahead of jobs data analyst prices in 3 rate cuts this year