SBE Council Chief Economist on Latest Jobs Data

Today, Raymond J. Keating, chief economist for the Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council (SBE Council), released the following statement in response to the January employment data reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics:

"The resiliency of U.S. businesses and entrepreneurs was on full display in the latest jobs numbers. No matter which survey is chosen - the establishment (or payroll) survey or the household survey - the jobs story for January was good.

"In fact, the household survey, which better captures startup and small business activity, was particularly strong. After factoring out population adjustments that the BLS puts into effect in January, compared to December, January employment was up by a robust 631,000, which was the biggest leap since November 2007.

"Just imagine what U.S. entrepreneurs, business and investors could be accomplishing if policymaking was shifted in a pro-growth direction of permanent and substantive tax and regulatory relief, less government spending, an aggressive free trade agenda, and sound monetary policy focused on price stability."