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The latest jobs report blew away expectations reflecting a booming US economy, while Target will raise its minimum wage as high as $24 an hour, gas prices soaring, Kunis and Kutcher, and more top news stories.
The US economy added 678,000 jobs in February, according to the latest figures from the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics released on Friday, smashing economists’ expectations.
The numbers reflect an increase of 278,000 and blowing away the figure of 400,000 expected by economists, while unemployment notched down 2 points from 4 percent in January, falling to 3.8 percent for February, MSNBC reported. That’s also one point lower than the 3.9 percent expected by Wall Street.
However, CNBC reported that wages remained flat, at 5.1 percent for the year, well below expectations. The biggest gains in employment were in the leisure and hospitality sectors, followed by professional and business services and healthcare.
Retail giant Target, which currently pays a $15 per hour starting wage, announced that it would be paying up to $24 an hour for some jobs, according to the market, local wage data, and other factors, NPR reported. The company also said it would expand employee access to healthcare, making a target medical plan available to hourly employees working an average of at least 25 hours per week. The company says the move is part of a $3 million investment in pay and benefits.
In the past week, the national average price of gasoline has soared by an average of 26 cents, with the national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline, as of March 4, 2022, at $3.837, according to the latest statistics from the gas prices tracker at AAA.
However, prices are significantly higher in some areas, with the highest price in California at $5.074
At least six states topped $4 per gallon, including Hawaii at $4.63, Oregon at $4.16, Nevada at $4.13, Washington at $4.10, Alaska at $4.03, and Illinois at $4.02.
Arkansas had the lowest gas at $3.33, Oklahoma at $3.36, Mississippi and Texas at $3.37, Missouri at $3.40, and Kentucky at $3.46.
Celebrity couple Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher announced they would match up to $3 million in donations to a fundraiser for fleeing Ukraine refugees. Kunis was born in Ukraine but has lived in the US since 1991, WFTV9 reported.
On Thursday, the couple unveiled their ‘Stand With Ukraine’ GoFundMe campaign benefiting Flexport.org and Airbnb.org via social media.
