Global markets responded meekly to Friday’s American jobs report, which came in well above expectations.
How important are the European, American, Chinese, Russian, and other large countries’ jobs reports?
Here is a look at the percentage growth in jobs by country, and absolute job growth by country, over the past few years.
Percentage Growth in Employment Since 2009
Before looking at the results, which top 15 economy would you guess experienced the largest job growth since 2009?
Perhaps surprisingly, businesses in South Korea expanded their payrolls the fastest, up 13%. Behind South Korea is the U.K. (about 8%), Australia (about 8%), Brazil (6%), and Canada (6%).
On the other end, the weakest businesses are largely headquartered in Europe, particularly Spain, France, Italy, and other European members.
In Spain, Italy, and France, job growth has actually declined over the past six years, with businesses in Spain down about 10%, Italy down about 3%, and businesses in France down about a third of a percent.
Japan is the sole non-European country in the bottom tier, up about 0.1%. That is up just 0.1% over 6 years.
Absolute Job Growth Since 2009
Shifting to the absolute job growth picture, the following is the job growth picture by country since 2009.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, businesses in China have been the largest contributor to global employment growth over the past six years, with Chinese businesses adding about 14 million employees (the China figures are not yet available for 2015).
Businesses in China are followed by businesses in the U.S. (about 8 million) and businesses in Russia (about 4 million).
On the other end, businesses in Spain are the least healthy, with employment down 2 million. Italy and France are also in the red, down 700K jobs and 58K jobs, respectively.
Absolute Job Growth Since 2013
Lastly, here is a look at employment growth since 2013.
This time period has business in the U.S. on top at about 7 million, followed by European countries at 5 million, and China at about 3 million (just a reminder that the China figure does not include any 2015 growth).
Interestingly, European businesses are starting to show some strength.
Conclusion
In looking at the jobs pictures around the globe, of the top 15 economies, the area where businesses are adding to their payrolls the fastest since 2009 is, surprisingly, South Korea. Since 2009, employment in the East Asian country is up 13%.
Other fast growing countries include the U.K., Canada, Brazil, and Australia.
On the other end of the percentage growth picture, job growth in Spain since 2009 is still below where it was in 2009, at -10%. Other areas where businesses are gingerly adding to their payrolls include Italy, France, Japan, and the European continent as a whole.
The absolute job picture looks somewhat different. The country where businesses are adding jobs the fastest since 2009 is China, with businesses hiring an additional over 14 million. The U.S. comes in second at 8 million, with Russia in third at 4 million.
