Good News All Around

The world’s largest economy appears to be solid as the Labor Department reported that 196,000 new jobs were created last month, an encouraging sign that hints the economy is picking up momentum with few signs of inflation. Wage gains eased and the increase in new jobs kept the unemployment rate at a 49-year low of 3.8%, which supports consumer confidence moving forward. The news is a good sign for the economy and attractive to financial markets as 10-year Treasury yields came in a few basis points to 2.50%. We are still fortunate to be in a low-interest-rate environment compared to last October when the 10-year hit a seven-year high of 3.23%. U.S. stocks have been upbeat due to the positive jobs report and progress in the continuing trade negotiations between the U.S. and China.