Washington, D.C. — High interest rates and currency pressures are dampening U.S. manufacturing jobs growth, largely negating the benefits of recent industrial policies put into place by the Biden administration and Congress. Factories gained 8,000 jobs in April, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday, but employment has been largely flat over the past year.
“Factory employment has been more or less treading water for the past 18 months,” Alliance for American Manufacturing President Scott Paul said. “That’s certainly better than some of the steep declines we’ve seen during economic slowdowns and the China Shock, but not as good as we should be doing.
“More than a $1 trillion in public investment is being infused into our productive sector, and a new wave of factory construction is underway, but we have yet to see the manufacturing jobs boom that is expected. One reason is certainly high borrowing costs in this capital-intensive sector. Another reason is the overly strong dollar, which is dampening exports and paving the way for more imports that may be displacing domestic production,” Paul said. “These macro factors are too big to ignore and may negate the potential benefits of this administration’s industrial policies.”
Private companies have announced more than $866 billion in U.S. manufacturing investment since President Biden took office, according to the White House. The Treasury Department reported a factory construction spending surge in summer 2023. Alliance for American Manufacturing President Scott Paul is available for interview.