The US economy has been worse for American workers than previously thought, according to new data from the federal government. Revised numbers show job growth has been far less robust than reported earlier, the latest in more than a week of almost-daily reports showing the nation’s economic stamina wavering.

The number of workers on payrolls will likely be revised down by 911,000 for the 12 months through March—or almost 76,000 less each month on average—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ preliminary benchmark revision out Tuesday. “The economy is weakening,” JPMorgan Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon said on CNBC. “Whether that is on the way to recession or just weakening, I don’t know.”

Last week, US unemployment was shown to have risen to 4.3%, the worst level of joblessness since the height of the pandemic, with the economy buffeted by uncertainty and rising costs tied to President Donald Trump’s trade war. Those figures added weight to the prior month’s jobs report, which showed a shockingly cooler hiring picture than previously thought. Trump fired the BLS commissioner as a result.

Meanwhile, that very agency faces a staffing crisis: A third of the high-level roles at the BLS are vacant. While the commissioner role has been temporarily filled, a range of other leadership positions that oversee various aspects of employment statistics and regional field operations sit empty. —Jordan Parker Erb and David E. Rovella

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The US Supreme Court added another stamp of approval, albeit a temporary one, to Trump’s bid to concentrate power in the executive branch at the expense of Congress. Chief Justice John Roberts on Tuesday granted an emergency Trump administration request without explanation for a second day in a row.  

Yesterday, Roberts temporarily refused to block Trump from firing a Democratic appointee of an independent federal agency. Today Roberts, who was appointed to the court by Republican President George W. Bush, said Trump can continue his freeze on $5 billion in foreign aid allocated by Congress. The delay could make it easier for Trump to make the freeze permanent. Researchers have estimated that the administration’s effort to eliminate foreign aid and aid agencies has already caused hundreds of thousands of deaths that would otherwise have been avoided.

The latest ruling also comes after yesterday’s decision to temporarily allow what legal experts call racial profiling by masked US immigration agents conducting roving patrols in and around Los Angeles. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, reacted to that 6-3 ruling by saying “Trump’s hand-picked Supreme Court majority just became the Grand Marshal for a parade of racial terror.”

Israel alerted the White House shortly before launching an unprecedented attack on Qatar that’s thrown into further doubt efforts to end the war in Gaza. An American ally and host of a major US military base, Qatar saw its capital struck as Israel said it was targeting senior Hamas officials. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s forces have conducted military strikes on nations across the region since the Gaza war began. The new Israeli attack escalated an already tense standoff between Netanyahu and Arab nations over the ongoing conflict. Qatar has been a key mediator between Israel and Hamas.

The strike came just hours after Israel ordered Gaza City’s one million residents to leave in advance of a major military offensive, with top officials vowing devastation unless Hamas surrenders. Much of the Gaza Strip has been destroyed, with Israeli forces reportedly blowing up tall residential buildings in recent days. Hamas’s health ministry has said more than 64,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. Hamas and other militant groups killed 1,200 people when they attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, Israel has said. A United Nations body declared a famine in parts of Gaza due to the lack of food aid being allowed into the territory.

Stocks hit all-time highs on hopes the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates in the face of the worsening jobs picture in the US. While most shares in the S&P 500 fell, the gauge rose amid gains in all big techs but Apple, which sank 1.5% after introducing its iPhone 17, including an already expected skinnier model (more on that below). In late hours, Oracle surged after posting a huge jump in bookings. A slide in bonds halted a four-day rally. Here’s your markets wrap.

Microsoft employees must return to the office three days a week. The requirement will start for workers in the Seattle area who live within 50 miles of an office at the end of February, before expanding to the rest of the US and launching internationally, Chief People Officer Amy Coleman wrote in a Tuesday memo. The directive comes as many of Microsoft’s peers have already summoned workers back to the office. Amazon, for example, has ordered employees to report to the office five days a week. 

Morgan Stanley ditched its bullish stance on Argentina. Ahead of a key local election in Buenos Aires this weekend, the bank advised clients to buy the government’s bonds, betting that President Javier Milei’s recent political stumbles had already been priced in during selloffs that swept through the nation’s financial markets the past few months.

On Sunday evening, word came that Milei’s party had been handed a crushing defeat in the vote, a troubling sign for his government ahead of nationwide congressional elections next month. By Monday morning, the bullish calls had backfired spectacularly.

Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned on the second day of violent protests in the South Asian nation. His resignation followed hundreds of protesters storming his office on Tuesday to demand he step down, the Press Trust of India reported. At least 19 people were killed and hundreds injured this week in protests, led mainly by young people, against a government ban on social media platforms. Nepal’s government ultimately scrapped the days-old ban. Still, unrest continues as protesters demand action against poor governance in the country.

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