July Jobs Soar, Hit Record 157,288,000 . . .

“The number of people employed in the United States hit a record 157,288,000 in July, according to the employment report released today by the Bureau of Labor Statistics,” Terence Jeffrey reports for CNSNews. “That was up 283,000 from the 157,005,000 employed in June.” The unemployment rate also held steady in July at 3.7 percent—a near-half century low.   Click here to read more. Council of Economic Advisers: Economy adds jobs as wages continue to grow

“The Labor Department reported Friday that payrolls increased 164,000” last month, Jeff Cox reports for CNBC. “Wages also continued to increase, with the 3.2% year-over-year gain topping expectations by one-tenth of a percentage point . . . Despite simmering worries of a manufacturing slowdown, jobs in the sector increased by 16,000.”

Yesterday, Kansas’ Laura Kelly became the first Democratic Governor to fully support the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA), drawing attention to its importance for her state’s trade, exports, and overall economy. “We need Congress to act. Ratifying USMCA, as well as improving relations with our trading partners around the globe, will benefit our agriculture sector and the economy as a whole,” she said in a statement. More: 41 New York state legislators back USMCA as “a better deal for our country”

“President Donald Trump launched a new attack on global trade rules last week in an attempt to get members of the World Trade Organization to agree to sweeping changes that would stop Chinese abuses of the international trading system. China’s exploitation of these loopholes is destroying a structure that has been vital to export industries in South Carolina and the rest of the United States,” The Post and Courier editorial board writes.

“The Mexican government says the number of U.S.-bound illegal migrants traveling through its country has decreased by 39% since May, a result of its bolstered enforcement efforts,” Jason Hopkins reports for The Daily Signal. “Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico’s foreign relations secretary, said Tuesday that the number of mostly Central American migrants traveling through the country to reach the U.S. dropped from 144,278 in May to 87,648 in June . . . Ebrard specifically credited Mexico’s recent crackdown on illegal immigration, brought on largely by pressure from the Trump administration.”