The labor market was slightly healthier than expected in November, according to the monthly jobs report released Friday morning. The U.S. economy added more than 200,000 jobs in the month, while the unemployment rate remained at 3.7%.
Key facts- Nonfarm payrolls rose by 227,000 last month, the Labor Department said, beating economists' consensus forecast of 214,000 jobs added, according to Dow Jones.
- That was an improvement from the weak 46-month job gain of 12,000 previously reported in October, a data point that many economists noted was negatively skewed by extreme weather events.
- The unemployment rate was 4.2% in November, the government said, matching expectations of 4.2%.
- The Labor Department revised up September and October payrolls by 32,000 and 24,000, respectively, meaning job growth was 56,000 more than it reported in those months.
Surprising factNovember marked the sixth consecutive month of unemployment above 4%, with the unemployment rate remaining above that mark after falling below 4% from February 2022 to April 2024, when unemployment hit its lowest level in five decades. French
$35.61. That's the average hourly wage for all private nonfarm payroll workers in the United States, a new record. Average wages have risen 4% over the past 12 months, faster than the annual inflation rate of less than 3% on both measures, although inflation has consistently outpaced wage growth over the past 12 months.
After the July jobs report briefly caused panic on Wall Street as unemployment unexpectedly rose to 4.3%, prompting a recession, concerns about the health of the labor market have eased in recent months. Secondary reports released earlier this week sent mixed signals, with the private ADP jobs report showing weaker-than-expected job growth and weekly jobless claims reaching an all-time high in six weeks, while job openings were more numerous than economists had expected. After a mini-dip in early August on labor market fears, stocks have hit all-time highs, with the benchmark S&P 500 index gaining more than 15% from its August lows.