US nonfarm payrolls are expected to rise by 80,000 in July after a 57,000-jobs gain in June, based on a survey compiled by Bloomberg, while the unemployment rate is expected to remain at 4.2% falling to that point in June.
The July employment report is due to be released at 8:30 am ET Friday.
Layoffs intentions declined further in July after falling in June, according to a Challenger, Gray and Christmas report, but the technology sector still led the total and artificial intelligence was the most cited region for the fifth straight month.
The BLS's private payrolls count, which excludes government payrolls, is expected to increase by 80,000 in July after a jobs gain of 49,000 in June. ADP reported that its measure of private payrolls rose by 44,000 jobs in July, led again by the education and health services sector.
Payrolls could see an additional boost from temporary hiring for the World Cup, analysts note, before a reversal in the coming months.
Initial and insured claims were both lower in the mid-July employment survey week compared with mid-June survey week.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses reported that 36% of small business owners continued to have problems filling current positions in July, up from 32% in June and the highest since June 2025.
Job openings decreased in June while hiring increased, according to the BLS's JOLTS report.
On the consumer side, the percentage of respondents saying that jobs were "plentiful" in the Conference Board's July consumer confidence survey fell by 0.9 percentage points to 24.6% while those saying jobs were "hard to get" decreased by only 0.2 percentage point to 21.5%, narrowing the gap between the two measures.
Average hourly earnings are expected to increase by 0.3% for the third straight month in July, while the year-over-year growth rate is expected to remain at 3.5%. The average workweek is expected to hold steady at 34.3 hours.