U.S. Economy Lost 23,000 Jobs in July — ‘Hiring Has Gone into Reverse’

July jobs report reveals unexpected loss of 23,000 jobs, missing economists' forecasts By Mary Cunningham / CBSNews / August 7, 2026 The U.S. economy unexpectedly shed 23,000 jobs in July, undershooting economists' expectations and signaling the job market may be slowing. By the numbers Economists polled by FactSet forecast employers added 95,000 jobs in July. Losses in local government education and retail dragged down last month's employment data, with the sectors losing 50,000 and 19,000 jobs, respectively. Healthcare, the main driver of payroll gains this year, added 22,000 jobs last month. The Labor Department also revised down the May and June jobs numbers by a combined 103,000, a sign that hiring was weaker than previously reported. "Hiring has gone into reverse — the economy actually shed jobs last month — and it turns out many of the jobs we thought were there in previous months never really existed," Nic Puckrin, markets expert and former Goldman Sachs analyst, said in an email.