The imaginary recession of 2019 is over.
The U.S. economy added 266,000 jobs for the month and the unemployment rate fell to 3.5 percent, matching the lowest level in 50 years.
Economists had expected the economy to add 187,000 jobs and for unemployment to remain unchanged at 3.6 percent, according to Econoday.
Adding to the picture of strength for the labor market, previous jobs numbers were revised up. September’s figure was revised up by 13,000 to 193,000. October was revised up by 28,000 to 156,000. Together, that adds 41,000 more jobs than previously reported.
The Friday report on nonfarm payrolls makes it clear that the economy is much stronger than thought by those who were predicting U.S. growth would slow dramatically or contract near year end.
A 7.8 magnitude quake in the Philippines kills at least 32, collapses buildings and sparks tsunami
Lead Mangione detective says silencer found in case was unlike anything he’d seen in 25 years
Israel Strikes Inside Iran After ‘Fanatical Regime’ Targets Residential Areas with Missiles
Major Defense Contractor Unveils New Tech to Stop Drone Swarms
‘Auramaxxing’: How the Trump administration is beautifying DC ahead of America 250
NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani says the Democratic Party ‘lost its focus on working people’
Why Trump picked Bill Pulte to lead US intelligence as critics question his qualifications
Leftist Seattle Mayor Walks Back Criticism of Major Company After It Starts Shifting Jobs to Nashville
Illegal Alien Gets Into Car Crash Near Another Illegal Alien Getting Arrested
Noncitizens on voter rolls in Democrat-run state exposed as RNC chair pledges secure elections
Walz administration ignored fraud warnings as billions vanished, House oversight report alleges
Walz administration used outside investigators to punish whistleblowers, oversight committee finds
Karmelo Anthony trial consumed by race and self-defense, but hidden hurdle could be key: expert
Raman overtakes Spencer Pratt in razor-thin race, AP count shows, but race remains uncalled
Spencer Pratt falls behind Nithya Raman in LA mayoral race after latest vote update
Hiring in November was strong across the board. Manufacturing, which had been a source of weakness in earlier reports, added 54,000 jobs. This was boosted by the end of the strike at General Motors, with autos adding 41,000. But economists, whose estimates were meant to reflect the end of the strike, had predicted just 15,000 extra jobs.
Healthcare added 45,000 jobs, as did leisure and hospitality. Employment in professional and technical services grew by 31,000.
Average hourly wages are up 3.14 percent compared with last year, above economist expectations. In manufacturing, the average workweek increased by 0.1 hour to 40.5 hours. Average hourly ages of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees rose by 7 cents in the month to $23.83, a 0.22 percent gain.
The labor force participation rate was little changed at 63.2 percent in November. The employment-population ratio was 61.0 percent for the third consecutive month. Both numbers would ordinarily be declining to do the expected retirement of baby-boomers. Holding steady indicates that the strong labor market is enticing workers to stay on the job.
Story cited here.
