February nonfarm payrolls dropped by 92,000, versus the expected gain of 55,000.
* Payroll declined the third time in the past five months.
* Unemployment rate edged higher to 4.4%
* Health Care jobs were affected by strikes.
* Informational services got hit by AI-related jobs.
* Federal government employment also dropped due to the Fed cutback.
* Transportation and warehousing have also dropped.
* Social assistance was one of the few sectors that gained.
[https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/february-2026-jobs-report.html](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/06/february-2026-jobs-report.html)
[https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm](https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm)