The Job Market is Crashing… Here’s Where to Invest

Friday brought bad news for the job market.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its latest figures for August and they were awful.

The U.S. economy only added 22,000 jobs in August. (Everyone expected 80,000 new jobs)

And June’s jobs number was revised down to a loss of 13,000 jobs.

June originally had a gain of 147,000 jobs, so these numbers are so much worse than we thought. That’s a swing of 160,000 Jobs… this is ugly.

The following chart really shows how big of a problem exists in the job market.

At the start of 2025, the U.S. economy was adding almost 700,000 jobs every three months.

Now? It’s down to just around 80,000 jobs.

Are we entering a recession?

It’s a little more complicated.

Something really interesting is happening with inflation.

Tariffs have people worried about inflation, but it hasn’t materialized into the Consumer Price Index (CPI) yet.

The CPI is the main way to measure inflation.

The CPI is based on prices consumers pay at places like the gas station, grocery store, or when they go out to eat.

And while inflation is relatively flat according to the CPI, it’s showing up in the Producer Price Index (PPI).

The PPI is based on prices businesses pay for their products and services.

Consumer prices were growing faster last summer, but producer prices have really taken off starting last fall.

Over the past year, the PPI has been rising 2% more than the CPI.

And it’s directly impacting jobs.

Businesses are paying more for imports because of tariffs.

But rather than pass those increases on to the consumer, businesses are cutting jobs to slash costs.

The bad jobs report means the Fed will cut interest rates.

And the stock market doesn’t know how to react.

The market opened higher on Friday after the jobs report, but soon started to fall.

Are lower interest rates going to jump-start the economy and lead to higher growth?

Or is it too late, and we’re heading into a recession?

Those are great questions… but what we really want to know is where to invest!

Real estate is going to take off with lower rates, and Realty Income (ticker: O) is one of the best.

Realty Income owns over 15,000 properties all over the world.

What happens to Realty Income if a recession hits?

Realty Income's largest concentration of properties are in convenience, grocery, and dollar stores.

Even in tough times, those types of stores aren’t going anywhere.

And if you need some extra income, Realty Income pays a dividend every single month!

Campbell’s Soup (ticker: CPB) is in the perfect spot when consumers start tightening their belts.

Campbell’s Soup does more than just soup.

The company owns salsa, spaghetti sauce, and bread, as well as snack foods like Goldfish and potato chips.

And without income from jobs, people will be cooking more at home instead of dining out.

Campbell’s Soup also has a forward price-to-earnings ratio of less than 10x, which is a lot lower than other packaged food companies.

People will cut back on shopping, but it won’t hurt TJX Companies (ticker: TJX).

TJX owns discount retailers including T.J. Maxx (clothing), Marshalls (department store), and HomeGoods (furnishings).

And consumers looking for a deal will line up at TJX’s stores.

Are you worried TJX’s prices are too low? Don’t be.

TJX’s 8.5% profit margin is one of the highest among all retailers.

After the latest jobs report, what changes are you making??