President Donald Trump faced fresh economic fallout on Friday, October 2, 2026, as the U.S. economy added just 29,000 jobs in September and unemployment ticked up to 4.2 percent, dealing a severe blow just one month before midterm elections.
September Jobs Report Misses Expectations and Unemployment Rises
Just one month before Election Day, President Donald Trump received a severe setback when on Friday the newest labor market statistics were published. The U.S. economy added just 29,000 jobs last month, falling far short of the 90,000 positions economists had projected. At the same time, the national unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2 percent, rising from 4.1 percent the previous month. Economists had expected that number to remain steady at 4.1 percent, and the release came just a day after the president had been bragging to reporters about the U.S. having the best numbers.
The numbers do not look good, remarked host Taylor Riggs during a broadcast on Fox Business. I’m looking at 29,000 jobs added.
That is well below expectations for 90,000, and our unemployment rate jumps up to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent the previous month.
A significant slowdown.
The panel on Fox Business was visibly shocked by the horror jobs report during the live broadcast.
Downward Revisions Compound Summer Hiring Weakness
Government data showed that the labor market’s troubles extend beyond the September figures, marking the final jobs report to be released before the midterms. The number of jobs added in July and August were revised down by a combined 60,000 positions. Revised figures indicate the economy actually lost 10,000 jobs in July after a downward revision of 31,000, while the August tally was trimmed by 29,000 to 133,000 added jobs. Job growth has continued to weaken since the president took office, with the average number of monthly jobs added over the prior 12 months sitting at 45,000. By comparison, the U.S. economy had been adding more than 120,000 jobs per month on average in 2024, which was the final year of Joe Biden’s presidency.
Sector breakdowns for September showed mixed results across industries. Last month, the country added 17,000 jobs in health care, though that represented a slower pace than the previous monthly average of 33,000 for the past 12 months. The U.S. also gained 11,000 construction jobs, marking a slight uptick from the previous 12-month average but falling below the 2024 monthly average. In addition, the nation added 9,000 manufacturing jobs in September, while the economy lost 7,000 jobs in the financial industry.
Wage Growth Lags Behind Inflation
Hourly earnings increased by only 0.1 percent to reach $37.81 during the previous month, whereas the most recent August inflation figures showed a 0.4 percent increase. Despite his administration’s tariff and war measures pushing costs higher for citizens, Trump asserted to journalists on Thursday that he had inflation completely under control. Even though the administration touted a decline in core inflation, Trump’s ongoing military conflict caused surging diesel and gasoline prices that heavily strained consumer budgets, and employee compensation kept falling behind inflation.
White House Reaction and Political Fallout Ahead of Midterms
The weak report arrives at a precarious political moment just a month before the midterm elections, with Americans already souring on him over the state of his economy. Speaking from the Oval Office, President Trump expressed his anger toward the financial markets, the Federal Reserve, and the trade partners of the United States. During his second term, the combination of a drop in hiring and an increase in prices has pursued Trump and his promise to immediately unleash historic levels of growth. Looking back to a campaign stop in North Carolina in August 2024, the then-candidate had vowed that upon winning the election they would immediately begin a new Trump economic boom.
“El éxito no causa inflación. La estupidez causa inflación”
Donald Trump
The president also criticized the drop in stock markets on Friday driven by inflationary concerns, calling it crazy. The national debt has already surpassed the intimidating threshold of 40 trillion dollars, and on Friday the rate on the 10-year U.S. Treasury bond rose to 4.79 percent. Because the promised growth has not yet materialized, the president has lost part of the public trust in his ability to steer the world’s largest economy. His own policies have contributed in part to the inflation and high interest rates that he wishes to attribute to others. On Friday, Trump claimed that gross domestic product would grow by 12, 13, 14, or 15 percent if interest rates were lower, maintaining that the country could have a GDP that would break every single record.