watch now8:2808:28Commerce Secretary Lutnick: Jobs number will 'get better' after Trump fired BLS chiefSquawk BoxCommerce Secretary Howard Lutnick predicted that the Bureau of Labor Statistics' new jobs report Friday would be more accurate because President Donald Trump fired former Commissioner Erika McEntarfer last month.Lutnick made that prediction less than an hour before BLS said job growth stalled out in August."I think they'll get better," Lutnick told CNBC's "Squawk Box" after he was asked if people should believe the BLS' numbers will be accurate.That's because "you'll take out the people who are just trying to create noise against the president," he said."The holdovers from the Biden administration" were "rooting against America and against Donald Trump, and that's got to end," Lutnick said in response to another question whether the Trump administration now considers the BLS credible."So he can't replace somebody two weeks ago, and you expect fundamental change, but what you will get is an agency that's on [Trump's] side, just trying to do the best and put out the correct numbers," he said.Trump had fired McEntarfer on Aug.
1, hours after her agency reported that U.S.
job growth had significantly slowed in July.McEntarfer was appointed by former President Joe Biden and confirmed by the Senate in 2024.The BLS report showed nonfarm payrolls rose by just 22,000 in August, far below economists' expectations for 75,000.
The unemployment rate also ticked up to 4.3% for the month.Read more CNBC coverageWhite House lambasts $2 trillion Norwegian wealth fund's Caterpillar exitUK feels the heat as investors and critics question its futureTrump asks Supreme Court to quickly hear appeal to his tariffsCongress races to avoid government shutdown as partisan standoff deepensBan on congressional stock ownership gains momentum with new billJudge voids $2.2 billion Harvard funding freeze by Trump administrationGOP senators not in rush to consider Cook replacement on Fed until case resolvedNewsmax sues Fox News for allegedly abusing monopoly powerTrump calls Epstein files distraction from success, victims call for their releaseTrump appeals ruling that National Guard deployment to LA broke the lawAbbe Lowell: The veteran defense lawyer squaring off against Trump in Federal Reserve fightTrump will ask Supreme Court for 'expedited ruling' on tariffs appealTrump, asked Thursday night if he could commit to saying that the BLS' upcoming jobs data would be credible, declined to do so."We'll see what the, the number — I don't know, they come out tomorrow," Trump said."But the real numbers that I'm talking are going to be whatever it is, but will be in a year from now" when the jobs data will "be absolutely incredible," he claimed.Don’t miss these insights from CNBC What Nvidia's earnings mean for the stock market and AI tradeJosh Brown says if Apple announced a deal with Perplexity AI, the s would hit a recordChallenging Buffett: Buying wonderful companies at fair prices isn't more fitableBest Stocks: The value name with one of the best long-term charts Josh Brown has ever seen