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Pedestrians and a construction worker walk past a lighted American flag in the rain in Times Square on August 22, 2013 in New York City. Afternoon rain which fell today in the city is expected to mostly clear by tomorrow.
Economists forecast that the pace of job creation in America slowed a bit last month, to a net total of 180,000 nonfarm payrolls, according to Bloomberg. The unemployment rate is expected to remain at a 16-year low of 4.3%.
Wage growth is expected to pick up slightly but remain sluggish. That's partly because baby boomers are retiring and being replaced by young workers with low-paying jobs, but is still puzzling since the unemployment rate is so low.
Average hourly earnings are seen rising 0.2% month-on-month and 2.6% year-on-year, up from 2.5% in July.
In all, it looks set to be another report that shows a healthy pace of job creation, but still too many Americans on the sidelines of the labor force. A broader measure of unemployment that includes people who work part-time but would prefer fulltime jobs - the U-6 rate - was at 8.6% in July, up from the most recent low of 8.4% it set in May.
Deutsche Bank's Brett Ryan sees Amazon's Jobs Day last month as possibly increasing overall hiring in the trade, transportation, and utilities sector. Economists will also be watching the retail sector, which increased hiring on net in July for the first time since January even as several department stores close.