The economy added 172,000 jobs in May, shattering expectations, new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed Friday.

The American job market continues to show surprising strength, shrugging off the high costs of the Iran war. Employers added 172,000 jobs in May — roughly double what forecasters had expected — and the unemployment rate remained at a low 4.

The May report blew past estimates of around 80,000 job gains, as the economy shows signs of momentum after a patch of job losses in the fall and winter.

The job market has been recovering this year from a miserable 2025, so far shrugging off higher energy prices and increased economic uncertainty since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran in late February.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 172,000 jobs were added in May, beating economist expectations of 85,000 while unemployment held at 4.3%.

U.S. employers added a surprising 172,000 jobs in May as the labor market continued to show resilience in the face of rising costs from the Iran war

The country added more jobs than expected in May, posting strong payroll gains for the third month in a row. Despite uncertainties around the Iran war, inflation, trade and artificial intelligence, the report suggests the U.

CNN News Central’s Kate Bolduan and Senior Reporter Matt Egan dive through the new May jobs report showing a much stronger than expected 172,000 jobs were added last month, indicating resilience despite rising costs from the Iran war.