Topic hub
Economy
Jobs, wages and prices are where the economy meets everyday life. This hub collects our analysis of the jobs market and hiring trends, what monthly jobs reports do and do not tell us, why pay has struggled to keep up with living costs, and how industry, trade and productivity, including the economics of artificial intelligence, are shaping the outlook.
It also follows economies beyond the United States, from the UK and the eurozone to China, India, Japan, Africa and the Gulf, with a focus on what their labour markets reveal.
Start here
Four pieces that give the clearest overview of this topic.
From Sprint to Jog to Crawl: Charting the American Labor Market’s Long Deceleration
There was a stretch, not all that long ago, when the American jobs machine felt almost unstoppable. Payroll figures consistently exceeded expectations. Employers were…
The Hidden Number Showing Just How Fragile the “Strong” Jobs Report Really Is
In the first twenty seconds of television coverage, virtually no one brings up a figure hidden in the monthly jobs data. The banner image…
The Wage Growth Mystery: Why Paychecks Stalled While Corporate Profits Didn’t
From time to time, the numbers stop making sense at some point in the economic cycle. Unemployment goes down. Earnings for businesses go up.…
The Productivity Number That Has Silicon Valley Worried About AI’s Real Payoff
This year, there's a figure that's being discussed in boardrooms and during earnings calls that no one really wants to say aloud. Approximately 90%…
Jobs market and hiring trends
Jobs reports, hiring and unemployment trends, and what the headline numbers leave out.
Rural America’s Labor Paradox: Desperate for Workers, Hostile to Newcomers
If you drive through rural Iowa on a Tuesday morning, you'll see "help wanted" signs in almost every store window. This includes the diner, the feed store, and the factory…
Show all 13 articles in Jobs market and hiring trends
- Consumer Confidence Is Sagging While Employment Holds, One of Them Is Lying
- Slack Water: The Strange Economic Moment Where Nobody’s Hiring and Nobody’s Firing
- Krugman vs. Warsh: The Economist Cage Match Over Whether the Job Market Is Actually Soft
- From Sprint to Jog to Crawl: Charting the American Labor Market’s Long Deceleration
- The Hidden Number Showing Just How Fragile the “Strong” Jobs Report Really Is
- The Hidden Hiring Freeze Quietly Spreading Across Corporate America
- The Surprising Industries Hiring the Most People Right Now, According to New Data
- The Surprising Reason Some of America’s Best Jobs Are Going Unfilled
- Why Companies Are Quietly Slowing Hiring Even as Layoffs Stay Low
- Minnesota Workforce Is Quietly Becoming One of America’s Most Resilient Labor Markets
Wages, inflation and cost of living
Pay growth, living costs, housing and household finances.
The Wage Growth Mystery: Why Paychecks Stalled While Corporate Profits Didn’t
From time to time, the numbers stop making sense at some point in the economic cycle. Unemployment goes down. Earnings for businesses go up. Executives get bigger bonuses. In spite…
Show all 6 articles in Wages, inflation and cost of living
Industry, trade and productivity
Trade, productivity, competition and the economics of new industries, including AI and data centres.
Manufacturers Are Under Cost Pressure, Behind on AI, and Out of Patience With Both
When the numbers don't match the story, there's a certain kind of anger that settles over a manufacturing boardroom. The story was believed by everyone. The pilot did its job.…
Show all 11 articles in Industry, trade and productivity
- Paying the Real Price of Protectionism – Who Benefits — and Who Loses — From Sudden Trade Tariffs?
- Stripping Assets, Cutting Staff – How Private Equity Ruined the Economics of Local Healthcare
- Exposing Vulnerable Infrastructure to Blackouts – Why Data Center Growth Risks Straining the Power Grid
- Sustaining Monopolistic Control: How Agricultural Giants Profit by Squeezing Local Farmers
- Squeezing Independent Music Producers: Why the Economics of Streaming Platforms Are Broken
- The Productivity Number That Has Silicon Valley Worried About AI’s Real Payoff
- The Hidden Economic Impact of AI’s Massive Appetite for Electricity
- Inside the Economic Boom and Bust Cycle Gripping America’s Lithium Towns
Global and regional economies
Economies and labour markets outside the United States, from Europe and Canada to Asia, Africa and the Gulf.
Australia’s Mining Towns Are Paying $200,000 for Workers Who Won’t Come
Between shifts, a certain kind of silence descends upon a mining camp. Everything is covered in red Pilbara dust. There is always heat. The closest city is about 1,600 kilometers…
Show all 14 articles in Global and regional economies
- Why the World Bank’s Latest Labor Report Has Economists Rethinking Global Growth
- Why Mexico’s Remittance Data Is Becoming a Surprising Labor Market Indicator
- What South Africa’s Unemployment Data Reveals About a Generation Locked Out of Work
- Inside the Surprising Economic Rebound Happening Across West Africa
- What New Zealand’s Unemployment Surge Reveals About a Once-Booming Economy
- Inside the Economic Fallout as China’s Property Crisis Drags Into Its Sixth Year
- Inside the Quiet Economic Power Shift Happening Across the Persian Gulf
- What the Latest Eurozone Labor Data Reveals About a Continent Falling Behind
- Why the Eurozone Keeps Dodging Recession Despite Every Prediction
- Why China’s Youth Unemployment Numbers Don’t Add Up – According to Economists
- Why Canada’s Economy Is Quietly Reorienting Away From the United States
Latest updates
Manufacturers Are Under Cost Pressure, Behind on AI, and Out of Patience With Both
When the numbers don't match the story, there's a certain kind of anger that settles over a manufacturing…
Rural America’s Labor Paradox: Desperate for Workers, Hostile to Newcomers
If you drive through rural Iowa on a Tuesday morning, you'll see "help wanted" signs in almost every…
The Wage Growth Mystery: Why Paychecks Stalled While Corporate Profits Didn’t
From time to time, the numbers stop making sense at some point in the economic cycle. Unemployment goes…
Britain’s Payroll Puzzle: The ONS Data Crisis That’s Leaving the Bank of England Flying Blind
The notion that one of the most closely watched central banks in the world may be determining interest…
Australia’s Mining Towns Are Paying $200,000 for Workers Who Won’t Come
Between shifts, a certain kind of silence descends upon a mining camp. Everything is covered in red Pilbara…
Why the Dow Hit a Record on the Day America Learned Hiring Had Stalled
Thursday, July 2nd was one of those days when you think about what the stock market is really…
Common questions
Answered in our own articles. Open a question for a summary and a link to the full piece.
What South Africa’s Unemployment Data Reveals About a Generation Locked Out of Work
Sometimes a set of numbers has actual weight, but otherwise they can be cold things. One such instance is the most recent labor force statistics from South Africa. The youth unemployment rate has increased from 36.9 percent ten years ago to 46.1 percent, with over…
What New Zealand’s Unemployment Surge Reveals About a Once-Booming Economy
In the March quarter, the unemployment rate in New Zealand decreased slightly to 5.3%. At first glance, that seems like good news. However, if you take a few minutes to look at the specifics behind that figure, the image becomes much less comforting. 163,000 people…
What the Latest Eurozone Labor Data Reveals About a Continent Falling Behind
The labor market in the eurozone appeared to be one of the few bright spots in an otherwise dismal economic picture for a while. The unemployment rate is close to all-time lows. employees who are still working. The evening news was not illuminated by a…
By region
Articles in this hub grouped by the country or region they cover.
United States 8
- Rural America’s Labor Paradox: Desperate for Workers, Hostile to Newcomers
- Why the Dow Hit a Record on the Day America Learned Hiring Had Stalled
- From Sprint to Jog to Crawl: Charting the American Labor Market’s Long Deceleration
- Decoding the 2026 Consumer Balance Sheet: Why the Federal Reserve Is Misinterpreting Spending Data
- The Hidden Hiring Freeze Quietly Spreading Across Corporate America
- The Surprising Reason Some of America’s Best Jobs Are Going Unfilled
- Inside the Economic Boom and Bust Cycle Gripping America’s Lithium Towns
- Minnesota Workforce Is Quietly Becoming One of America’s Most Resilient Labor Markets