The July Jobs report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on Friday, is raising concerns among economists, who warn that the latest data and sharp downward revisions point to a labor market that is losing momentum and potentially edging toward a recession.
What Happened: On Sunday, in a post on X, former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers said that the U.S. economy was “closer to stall speed than we thought,” citing the bleak figures published in the report.
Besides the disappointing payroll growth of just 73,000 during the month, far short of the expected 110,000, Summers says “the big deal” is the downward revisions for May and June, which now show job growth of just 19,000 and 14,000, respectively, down from the initial estimates of 144,000 and 147,000.
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“That means there is a real possibility that we’re in a stall speed kind of economy,” Summers says, warning that “we could tip over into recession”
University of Michigan professor and former chief economist at the U.S. Department of Labor, Betsey Stevenson, tied the weakness in the nation’s labor market to the administration’s recent policy decisions.
She says, “The Trump administration has actively sought to reduce education, government, construction, and leisure and hospitality,” and asks why it is so surprising that the “policies worked as expected?”
Danish economist Lars Christensen was more blunt in his take, saying that “The U.S. employment report for July 2025 should be setting off alarm bells in the White House,” while adding that the Bureau’s admission that revisions were “larger than normal” was a rare sign.
Christensen acknowledges that the figures themselves don’t indicate a recession, but calls it a sign of an economy “that has lost its breath.”
He says, “The slowdown is occurring before the full effects of tariff increases have hit. When businesses truly feel the effects, we should expect further weakening.”
Why It Matters: President Donald Trump on Friday ordered the dismissal of Erika McEntarfer, Commissioner of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, following the release of the July jobs report.
Trump accused McEntarfer of manipulating employment data for political purposes, but failed to provide any evidence to support this claim.
The deepening economic woes have led Trump’s disapproval ratings to soar to a new high of 52.1%, up from 51.5% the prior month.
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