A now hiring sign pictured Jan. 2021 in the window of a fast food restaurant in Orange Calif. On Thursday, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in September a higher number of jobs were added to the U.S. economy than initially anticipated. File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI | License Photo
The Bureau of Labor Statistics said Thursday shared delayed job numbers from September, showing more jobs than expected were created during the month.
In September, total nonfarm payroll employment went up by 119,000 but showed “little” change since April, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It was up from a 4,000 drop in jobs in August.
Wall Street, meanwhile, projected roughly 50,000.
According to the Labor Department, there were 220,000 initial jobless claims for the week ending Saturday, which was an 8,000 decrease from the last period.
The bureau added that employment continued to trend up in health care with some 43,000 fresh jobs added, around 37,000 in food and drinking establishments and 14,000 in areas of social assistance.
But BLS data reported that September’s 4.4% unemployment rate “changed little” with job losses occurring largely in transportation, warehousing and in the federal government.
The release ended the delay in jobs report numbers due to the 44-day government shutdown, which was the longest in U.S. history. It was the first jobs report by the Labor Department bureau since the August numbers were released in September.
Last week, the Trump administration warned the shutdown by the Republican-controlled Congress may likely impact the Consumer Price Index and federal jobs reports slated to be released as expected.
On Wednesday, the bureau revealed that October and November’s data will both be dropped simultaneously on Dec. 9.
Andrew Ross Sorkin, a financial analyst on MS NOW, said Thursday that “it’s all very backward looking” and portrayed a “mixed picture” for the U.S. economy.
The unemployment data, he commented, “has gotten a little bit worse.”
He speculated the Federal Reserve would likely opt not to lower rates in December. It came on top of reports Fed members were at odds over further rate cuts.
