What’s Up? (July 31-Aug. 6)
A Jobs Day Surprise
Analysts had forecast an increase of 250,000 jobs in July. And so it was a shock when the Department of Labor’s report showed that more than twice that number — 528,000 — were added last month. The blistering pace of growth brought total employment back to prepandemic levels, a befuddling benchmark considering other recent signs of a slowing economy, including a falling gross domestic…