US jobs data: Only 12,000 jobs added in October

Washington: America’s employers added simply 12,000 jobs in October, a complete that economists say was held down by the consequences of strikes and hurricanes that left many employees quickly off payrolls. The report offered a considerably blurry view of the job market on the finish of a presidential race that has pivoted closely on voters’ emotions in regards to the financial system.

Final month’s hiring acquire was down considerably from the 223,000 jobs that had been added in September. However economists have estimated that Hurricanes Helene and Milton, mixed with strikes at Boeing and elsewhere, had the impact of pushing down internet job progress by tens of hundreds of jobs in October. Friday’s report from the Labor Division additionally confirmed that the unemployment charge remained at 4.1% final month. The low jobless charge means that the labor market remains to be basically wholesome, if not as sturdy because it was early this yr. Mixed with an inflation charge that has tumbled from its 2022 peak to close pre-pandemic ranges, the general financial system seems to be on stable footing on the eve of Election Day.

The federal government didn’t estimate what number of jobs had been doubtless eliminated quickly from payrolls final month. However economists have mentioned they assume the storms and strikes brought about as much as 100,000 jobs to be dropped. Reflecting the influence of the strikes, factories shed 46,000 positions in October.