US non-farm payrolls jump by 280,000 in May, Treasury yields rocket

US non-farm payrolls increased by 280,000 in May, ahead of the 226,000 predicted by economists, official data showed on Friday.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.5%, as expected. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics said job gains occurred in professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and health care, while mining employment continued to decline.

“Fed Chair Janet Yellen won’t be getting too carried away with the better than expect non-farm payroll data released today as the disappointment from the latest GDP numbers that showed the world’s largest economy contracted still lingers," said Dennis de Jong, managing director at UFX.com.

“The situation in Greece will significantly impact on world markets and the proposed US interest rate hike will need to wait for a solid run of positive domestic data before Yellen can confidently take action. Today’s non-farm payroll figures are just one step on what could turn out to be a longer than expected road toward higher rates.”

The unemployment rate ticked higher by one tenth of a percentage point to 5.5% (consensus: 5.4%).

Average hourly earnings increased at a month-on-month pace of 0.3% (consensus: 0.2%).

As of 13:38 the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note was 12 basis points higher to 2.42%.