The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its December jobs report on January 4. Manufacturing continued to add jobs to the U.S. labor market in December. 2018 was a strong year for manufacturing jobs.
According to the Employment Situation Summary the manufacturing sector added 32,000 jobs in December 2018. 19,000 of the jobs were in “durable goods”.
Manufacturing added 32,000 jobs in December. Most of the gain occurred in the durable goods component (+19,000), with job growth in fabricated metal products (+7,000) and in computer and electronic products (+4,000). Employment in the nondurable goods component also increased over the month (+13,000). Manufacturing employment increased by 284,000 over the year, with about three-fourths of the gain in durable goods industries. Manufacturing had added 207,000 jobs in 2017.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Situation Summary
Durable goods are defined as items that have a useful life over a period of time (3 years, as an example). Examples of durable goods are automobiles, appliances, and furniture.
Source: Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott. Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
