U.S. Economy Lost Jobs In February 2026 As Several Sectors Showed Weakness
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Meanwhile, here are the major economic headlines from the last week:
- The U.S. economy shed 92,000 jobs in February and the nation’s unemployment rate rose to 4.4 percent that month from 4.3 percent in January. Declines in the health care and information sectors led the decline, but employment also showed little change over the month in other major industries, including manufacturing; mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction; construction; wholesale trade; retail trade; financial activities; professional and business services; and leisure and hospitality. In related news: U.S. nonfarm business sector labor productivity increased 2.8 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 as output increased 2.6 percent and hours worked decreased 0.2 percent.
- U.S. manufacturing readings released last week were mixed. The S&P Global U.S. manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for February fell to 51.6 from 52.4 in January, marking the weakest expansion in seven months. The slowdown in production growth was attributable to near-stagnant orders and a drop in exports. Extreme weather and political uncertainty, particularly regarding tariffs, also affected business confidence and hiring. Read the full report at this link. In contrast, the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing PMI held fairly steady at 52.4, down only slightly from 52.6 in January. New orders and production both grew, while supplier deliveries slowed down and employment contracted. Read that report at this link.
- The U.S. Census Bureau reported the combined value of distributive trade sales and manufacturers’ shipments rose 0.5 percent from November 2025 to December 2025 and 3.2 percent from December 2024. Inventories were up 0.1 percent for the month and 1.6 percent year-over-year. The total business inventories-to-sales ratio was 1.36 at the end of December, down from 1.39 the year before.
- U.S. import prices rose 0.2 percent in January as higher prices for nonfuel imports offset lower prices for fuel imports. Prices for U.S. exports rose 0.6 percent in January, after rising 0.6 percent the previous month. Read the full report at this link.
- During the week that ended Feb. 28, 213,000 Americans filed for federal unemployment benefits for the first time, a number that was unchanged from the previous week. The four-week moving average of first-time claims was 215,750, a declined of 4,750 from the previous week. The number of people who continued to receive jobless benefits rose to 1.868 million for the week that ended Feb. 21, 2026. That number was up by 46,000 from the week before. The four-week moving average of continuing claims dropped to 1,851,500, an increase of 6,750 from the week before.