In May, U.S. non-farm employment exceeded expectations, and the continued high unemployment rate may delay The Federal Reserve (FED) from lowering interest rates.

Data released by the Bureau of Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor on Friday showed that non-farm payrolls increased by 139,000 in May (the previous value was revised down to 147,000), higher than the market expectation of 130,000, and job growth continued to slow under the influence of trade policy uncertainty, and the unemployment rate remained at 4.2% for the third consecutive month, which may provide policy space for the Federal Reserve to delay interest rate cuts. The U.S. economy needs to create about 100,000 jobs per month to keep up with the growth of the working-age population. That number is likely to drop as U.S. President Donald Trump revokes the temporary legal status of hundreds of thousands of immigrants in his crackdown on immigration. Much of this year’s job growth reflects the hoarding of workers by businesses at a time when Mr. Trump is vacillating on tariffs, which economists say has hampered the ability of companies to plan ahead. The U.S. Senate’s hardline conservative Republicans and Musk’s opposition to Trump’s tax cuts and spending bill has added another layer of uncertainty to businesses. Employers’ reluctance to lay off workers is likely to keep the Fed on the sidelines until the end of the year. Financial markets expect the Fed to keep its benchmark overnight interest rate unchanged at a range of 4.25%-4.50% this month and resume accommodative policy in September.