By Mike Sunnucks | Rose Law Group Reporter
Arizona added 1,900 manufacturing jobs, 1,800 banking and finance jobs and another 1,600 construction jobs last month even as summer vacations and heat hit other sectors and in the midst of President Donald Trump’s trade and border skirmishes.
Arizona’s private sector lost 2,800 jobs in June, according to new state employment figures.
That was because hotels, resorts and restaurants shed 5,800 jobs with the summer slowdown in tourism. Private educational services dropped 4,700 jobs due to summer vacations for schools.
But manufacturing, construction and finance added 5,300 jobs and trade and transportation gained another 3,700 jobs for the month.
Critics of President Trump’s tariffs on China and threats of big tariffs on Mexico unless immigration caravans from Central America warned those stances would dampen hiring and economic confidence. Mexico ended up working out a deal with the U.S. on border security.
The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate remained unchanged for June compared to May at 4.9 percent. The U.S. unemployment rate is 3.7 percent.
For the year, Arizona has seen job gains in education and health care (23,900), construction (18,200), professional and business services (12,600) and trade and transport (11,000) and manufacturing (8,000), according to the state jobs data.
