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This Week in the Economy: May 5–9, 2025

Posted on May 4, 2025 by | Leave a comment

Analyzing the U.S. Economic Calendar Through the Lens of African American Economic Empowerment

Monday, May 5

  • S&P Final U.S. Services PMI (Apr): 51.0 (Prev: 51.4)
  • ISM Services Index (Apr): 50.4% (Prev: 50.8%)

A cooling services sector raises concerns for Black-owned businesses and workers concentrated in service-based industries. Marginal growth may mean tighter margins and slower hiring, especially in personal care, retail, and small hospitality—fields where many African American entrepreneurs and employees operate.

Tuesday, May 6

  • U.S. Trade Deficit (Mar): -$136.0B (Prev: -$122.7B)

The growing trade deficit highlights America’s deepening reliance on imports, reinforcing structural challenges for domestic manufacturing. This imbalance is particularly troubling for aspiring Black manufacturers and export-driven enterprises that struggle to compete with cheaper foreign supply chains and lack equitable access to capital or infrastructure.

Wednesday, May 7

  • FOMC Meeting & Fed Chair Powell Press Conference
  • Consumer Credit (Mar): $11.0B (Prev: -$800M)

The Federal Reserve’s direction this week is critical. Interest rate policy affects African American households disproportionately, with higher borrowing costs hitting hardest among those with lower credit scores and less generational wealth. A rise in consumer credit signals that families—many Black households included—may be increasingly relying on debt to maintain basic living standards amid inflation. The burden of debt is rising, not falling.

Thursday, May 8

  • Initial Jobless Claims (May 3): 230,000 (Prev: 241,000)
  • U.S. Productivity (Q1): -0.5% (Forecast: +1.5%)
  • Wholesale Inventories (Mar): +0.5% (Prev: +0.3%)

Jobless claims are stable, but national figures obscure racial disparities. Black unemployment remains consistently higher than average. Meanwhile, negative productivity numbers may point to slower wage growth—again affecting African American workers in roles offering limited career mobility. Rising wholesale inventories suggest slowing consumer demand, which could hit Black-owned consumer goods businesses that often operate without deep cash reserves.

Friday, May 9

  • Fed Governor Lisa Cook Speech (6:45 AM ET)
  • Multiple Fed Speakers Throughout Day

All eyes will be on Lisa Cook, the first Black woman on the Fed’s Board of Governors. Her remarks may provide valuable insight into how the central bank views labor market equity and inflation’s disproportionate impact on communities of color. The deluge of Fed speeches will shape interest rate sentiment and financial market reactions—affecting everything from mortgage rates for HBCU alumni to capital access for Black banks, credit unions, and small businesses.

HBCU Money Perspective:
This week’s economic events carry clear signals for the African American economy. Slower service sector growth, rising debt reliance, and stagnant productivity reinforce the need for systemic change—particularly in access to capital, support for Black manufacturing, and inclusive monetary policy. As Fed policy direction becomes clearer, HBCUs, Black-owned financial institutions, and policy advocates must prepare to assertively engage with these shifts to protect and grow Black wealth.

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African America’s February 2025 Jobs Report – 6.0%

Posted on March 15, 2025 by | Leave a comment

OVERALL UNEMPLOYMENT: 4.1%

AFRICAN AMERICA: 6.0%

LATINO AMERICA: 5.2%

EUROPEAN AMERICA: 3.8%

ASIAN AMERICA: 3.2%

Analysis: European Americans unemployment rate pushes higher to 3.8 percent, a return to its five month high. Asian Americans decreased 50 basis points and Latino Americans increased 40 basis points from January, respectively. African Americans unemployment rate decreased 20 basis points from January. This is the second lowest rate in the past five months.

AFRICAN AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 5.5%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 5.4% 

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 19.2%

AFRICAN AMERICAN PARTICIPATION BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 68.3%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 62.7%

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 30.6%

Analysis: African American Men saw a decrease in their unemployment rate by 140 basis points and African American Women remain unchanged in February, respectively. African American Men decreased their participation rate in February by 70 basis points. African American Women increased their participation rate in February by 20 basis points, their highest participation rate in the past five months. African American Teenagers unemployment rate increased by 970 basis points. African American Teenagers saw their participation rate increase by 530 basis points in February, their highest participation rate in the past five months.

African American Men-Women Job Gap: African American Women currently have 793,000 more jobs than African American Men in February. This is a decrease from 806,000 in January.

CONCLUSION: The overall economy added 151,000 jobs in February while African America added 80,000 jobs. From CNBC, “The report comes amid efforts from Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency to pare down the federal government, starting with buyout incentives and including mass firings that have impacted multiple departments. Though the reductions likely won’t be felt fully until coming months, the efforts are beginning to show. Federal government employment declined by 10,000 in February though government payrolls overall increased by 11,000, the BLS said. Many of the DOGE-related layoffs happened after the BLS survey reporting period, meaning they won’t be included until the March report. Outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported earlier this week that announced layoffs under Musk’s efforts totaled more than 62,000.”

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

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African America’s January 2025 Jobs Report – 6.2%

Posted on February 19, 2025 by | Leave a comment

OVERALL UNEMPLOYMENT: 4.0%

AFRICAN AMERICA: 6.2%

LATINO AMERICA: 4.8%

EUROPEAN AMERICA: 3.5%

ASIAN AMERICA: 3.7%

Analysis: European Americans unemployment rate pushes lower to 3.5 percent, its lowest rate in the past five months for the second month in a row. Asian Americans increased 20 basis points and Latino Americans decreased 30 basis points from December, respectively. African Americans unemployment rate increased 10 basis points from December. This is the second highest rate in the past five months.

AFRICAN AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 6.9%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 5.4% 

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 9.5%

AFRICAN AMERICAN PARTICIPATION BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 69.0%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 62.5%

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 25.3%

Analysis: African American Men saw an increase in their unemployment rate by 130 basis points and African American Women remain unchanged in January, respectively. African American Men increased their participation rate in January by 80 basis points bringing a halt to a four month decline. African American Women increased their participation rate in January by 10 basis points. African American Teenagers unemployment rate decreased by an unprecedented 1,070 basis points. African American Teenagers saw their participation rate decrease by 420 basis points in January, their lowest participation rate in the past five months.

African American Men-Women Job Gap: African American Women currently have 806,000 more jobs than African American Men in January. This is an increase from 757,000 in December.

CONCLUSION: The overall economy added 143,000 jobs in January while African America added 234,000 jobs. From Yahoo Finance, “Recent data has shown the labor market slowing but not rapidly deteriorating, as layoffs remain low. Economists have largely argued the recent string of labor market data fits the “broadly stable” labor market narrative Fed Chair Jerome Powell described in his most recent press conference on Jan. 29. “It’s a low-hiring environment,” Powell said. “So if you have a job, it’s all good. But if you have to find a job, the job-finding rate, the hiring rates have come down.”

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics

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African America’s December 2024 Jobs Report – 6.1%

Posted on January 13, 2025 by | Leave a comment

OVERALL UNEMPLOYMENT: 4.2%

AFRICAN AMERICA: 6.1%

LATINO AMERICA: 5.1%

EUROPEAN AMERICA: 3.6%

ASIAN AMERICA: 3.5%

Analysis: European Americans unemployment rate pushes lower to 3.6 percent, its lowest rate in the past five months. Asian Americans decreased 30 basis points (lowest among all groups) and Latino Americans decreased 20 basis points from November, respectively. African Americans unemployment rate decreased 30 basis points from November. Over the past five months this is African America’s median unemployment rate.

AFRICAN AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 5.6%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 5.4% 

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 20.2%

AFRICAN AMERICAN PARTICIPATION BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 68.2%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 62.4%

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 29.5%

Analysis: African American Men saw a decrease in their unemployment rate by 40 basis points and African American Women decreased by 50 basis points. African American Men decreased their participation rate in December by 50 basis points, a fourth month decline. African American Women increased their participation rate in December by 10 basis points. African American Teenagers unemployment rate increased by 210 basis points. African American Teenagers saw their participation rate increase by 170 basis points in December, their highest participation rate in the past five months after their lowest in five months last month.

African American Men-Women Job Gap: African American Women currently have 757,000 more jobs than African American Men in December. This is an increase from 640,000 in November.

CONCLUSION: The overall economy added 256,000 jobs in December while African America added 84,000 jobs. From CNN, “The selloff comes as the economy added 256,000 jobs in December, far outpacing expectations of around 153,000 jobs. While strong job growth signals a healthy economy, it raises the question of how soon the central bank needs to cut interest rates again. Additionally, President-elect Donald Trump’s proposed tariff policies, including reports of declaring a national economic emergency to impose widespread tariffs, has spooked investors, sending bond yields surging.”

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African America’s January 2024 Jobs Report – 5.3%

Posted on February 5, 2024 by | Leave a comment

OVERALL UNEMPLOYMENT: 3.7%

AFRICAN AMERICA: 5.3%

LATINO AMERICA: 5.0%

EUROPEAN AMERICA: 3.4%

ASIAN AMERICA: 2.9%

Analysis: Asian and European Americans both saw a decrease in their unemployment rate from December with a decrease of 20 and 10 basis points, respectively. Latino Americans saw no change in their unemployment rate. African Americans had an increase in their unemployment rate of 10 basis points for December.

AFRICAN AMERICAN UNEMPLOYMENT RATE BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 5.3%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 4.8% 

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 11.6%

AFRICAN AMERICAN PARTICIPATION BY GENDER & AGE

AFRICAN AMERICAN MEN: 69.4%

AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMEN: 62.9%

AFRICAN AMERICAN TEENAGERS: 31.6%

Analysis: African American Men saw an increase in their unemployment rates by 70 basis points while African American Women remain unchanged for a third straight month from December. African American Men increased and Women decreased in their participation rate from December of 20 basis points and 30 basis points, respectively. African American Teenagers unemployment rate plumets by 640 basis points. They also had their participation rate increase by 90 basis points.

African American Men-Women Job Gap: African American Women currently have 728,000 more jobs than African American Men in January. This is an increase from 665,000 in December.

CONCLUSION: The overall economy added 335,000 jobs in January while African America loss 65,000 jobs. From Bloomberg, “Gains were broad-based across sectors, led by professional and business services, health care, retail trade and social assistance. Nearly all sectors, except mining and gas extraction, saw additional jobs in January. Wages skyrocketed on the month and from the prior year, both above what economists expected to see. Average hourly earnings were up 0.6% from the prior month, double the average estimate, and rose 4.5% from the prior year. Part of the outsize gains could be attributed to reduced hours, which tend to distort pay. Hours worked fell to the lowest since March 2020.”

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