The United States economy added 850,000 jobs in June, well above the average of the previous three months and a sign that companies may be having an easier time finding enough workers to fill open jobs. The reopening of the economy is propelling a powerful rebound from the pandemic recession.

• In June, average hourly pay rose ~3.6% compared to a year ago - faster than the pre-pandemic annual pace
• Unemployment rose from 5.8% in May to 5.9% in June
• Despite the job market’s steady gains, unemployment remains well above the 3.5% rate that prevailed before the pandemic struck, and the economy remains 6.8 million jobs short of its pre-pandemic figures
• The proportion of Americans who quit their jobs in April reached its highest level in more than 20 years
   

Although the job market is heating up, there is a broad national worker shortage. Transportation, warehousing, and utilities are among the businesses gripped by escalating worker shortages, as employers in a few pockets of the economy bolstered competition for workers and sharply increased wages.

• The United States saw a record 9.3 million job openings in April, according to a release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Coincidentally, 9.3 million Americans were unemployed as of May, a separate BLS release showed

U.S. ports continue to break records as consumers spend more money on goods rather than services such as restaurants, bars, sporting events and concerts.

• The Port of Long Beach said the United States’ second-busiest port “continued its unprecedented streak of single-month records in May by moving more than 900,000 cargo containers for the first time in its 110-year history”
• The port handled 907,216 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in May, breaking the previous “best month” record set just two months earlier by 66,829 TEUs

Delays are expected to persist at shipping terminals worldwide due to COVID-related port closures and a significant increase in trade volumes, as well as challenges with winter weather on the horizon.

• At Yantian Port in Shenzhen, one of the world’s largest ports, there is now an average waiting time of 16 days per vessel
• The cost of moving a container from Asia to Europe is now at record levels – above $10,000 for the first time ever

The U.S. economy’s rebound from the pandemic is driving the biggest surge in inflation since 2008, with consumer prices rising in May by 5% from a year ago. However, annual inflation measurements are being boosted by comparisons with figures from 2020 during pandemic-related lockdowns - when prices plummeted because of collapsing demand for many goods and services.

• Inflation tied to a gauge of consumer spending that is closely watched by the Federal Reserve is up 3.9% over the past year, the largest 12-month increase since 2008 and well above the Fed’s 2% target for annual price increases
• Core inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy costs, rose 0.5% in May and is up 3.4% over the past 12 months, the biggest jump since 1991

The networks which make up the global food supply chain have been significantly impacted from lockdowns and freight shortages that were caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

• A key indicator for global food prices, the UN's Food and Agricultural Organization's (FAO) Food Price Index reported in June that the cost of its basket of agricultural commodities was up by 40% on the year
• Within its index, vegetable oils were up by 125%, cereals including rice were 36% higher, and sizable increases for sugar, dairy and meat products were also recorded. The FAO also recorded that rice prices were down by 4.5% on year

Poultry prices have soared to record levels after several large fast-food restaurant chains recently launched fried chicken sandwiches. Sales have also surged with consumers preparing more meals at home during the pandemic. Meanwhile, poultry producers have struggled to keep up with the growing demand due to labor shortages at meat plants and severe storms.

• U.S. producer prices for processed poultry jumped to an all-time high in May, climbing 2.1% in the eighth straight monthly increase, U.S. government data showed
• Gains in poultry outpaced the 0.8% increase in the broader producer price index