On the recordSeptember 18, 2018
Mr. President, before I close, I want to mention the good economic news that continues to pour in. The economy created more than 200,000 jobs in August, beating expectations, and the unemployment rate was yet again below 4 percent. Economic growth in the second quarter was even stronger than we thought--a robust 4.2 percent. Average hourly earnings for workers are rising at the fastest rate since 2009. Middle-class income hit its highest level ever last year. In 2017, U.S. job openings have hit a record high of 6.94 million jobs. In fact, the number of job openings has exceeded the number of unemployed in this country for the past 5 months. Think about that. The number of job openings--the number of jobs available to people in this country--has exceeded the number of people who are unemployed in this country for the past 5 months. That has never happened before in the history of tracking those two statistics. Consumer confidence is at an 18-year high. Small business optimism shattered its previous record high to reach a record high in August. The poverty rate has dropped to its lowest level since 2006. The percentage of Americans listing economic issues as the most important problem in the United States dropped to a record low, and the list continues. These are all facts.…
Source
govinfo.gov




