Analysts had expected an uptick in the number of jobs created, but the number of roles fell by 23,000 in July.

The US economy is creating fewer jobs than expected with the employment market performing weaker during the summer than previously thought, official figures show. There was a surprise shedding of 23,000 jobs last month, with declines driven by cuts in local government education and retail roles, despite analysts predicting growth. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also revised down the number of jobs added in May and June by 103,000, signalling a slow summer of job creation. Analysts said the latest figures could reduce pressure on the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, to raise interest rates next month, despite high inflation. Nancy Vanden Houten, lead economist at Oxford Economics, said expectations of interest rates being raised had been "scaled back", since the decision last month. US stock markets opened higher on Friday following the release of the latest jobs figures on the prospect that the weaker data might prevent any rate hikes. Analysts had expected an uptick in the number of jobs being added to the economy last month of 80,000, as opposed to a loss of 23,000. As well as falls in local government education there were also declines in retail roles, including in wholesale stores, hypermarkets, gas stations and general mechanise shops.