U.S. Adds 165,000 Jobs in October; Unemployment Rate at 4.1%
Payroll growth topped the Dow Jones forecast of 59,000, while earlier estimates for August and September were revised higher.
U.S. employers added 165,000 jobs in October, and the unemployment rate edged down to 4.1%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.
The payroll gain was well above the Dow Jones forecast of 59,000 cited by CNBC. Economists had expected unemployment to remain at 4.2%, its September level.
Professional and business services added 70,000 jobs. Health care and transportation and warehousing also added workers, according to the BLS. The overall gain was above the average monthly increase of 48,000 over the prior 12 months.
The labor force participation rate was 61.9%, little changed from September. About 7.1 million people were unemployed, while the number working part time for economic reasons rose by 339,000 to 4.8 million.
Average hourly earnings for private-sector workers rose 14 cents, or 0.4%, to $38.00. Earnings were up 3.1% over the past year. The average private-sector workweek held at 34.4 hours.
The BLS also revised earlier payroll estimates higher. August's gain rose to 186,000 from 133,000, and September's rose to 60,000 from 29,000, adding 84,000 jobs to the two months combined.
The payroll and unemployment figures come from separate surveys. Payroll employment is measured through employers, while unemployment comes from a household survey. The monthly estimates remain subject to revision.