The unemployment rate unexpectedly fell in November, reflecting signs that the labor market may not be cooling as quickly as many had initially thought.
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed Friday the unemployment rate was 3.7% down from 3.9% in October, while US economy added 199,000 jobs, an uptick from the previous month as striking auto workers and Hollywood actors came back to the workforce.
Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected job gains of 185,000 with unemployment holding steady from the prior month at 3.9%.
Here are the key numbers compared to estimates from Bloomberg:
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Nonfarm payrolls: 199,000 vs. +185,000 est. (+150,000 previously)
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Unemployment rate: 3.7 vs. 3.9% est. (3.9% previously)
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Average hourly earnings, month-on-month: 0.4% vs. +0.3% est. (+0.2% previously)
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Average hourly earnings, year-on-year: 4.0 vs. +4.0% est. (+4.1% previously)
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Average weekly hours worked: 34.4 vs. 34.3
Data released earlier this week showed signs of a cooling labor market. On Tuesday, the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report, revealed the ratio of job openings to the number of unemployed workers fell to 1.34, its lowest reading since August 2021.
Additional labor market data out Wednesday from ADP showed private payrolls increased more slowly than expected last month and wages continued to fall. Specifically, ADP noted that the drop in leisure and hospitality jobs in November could be a sign of the labor market normalizing, and therefore payroll growth could eventually slow next year.
“Restaurants and hotels were the biggest job creators during the post-pandemic recovery,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP. “But that boost is behind us, and the return to trend in leisure and hospitality suggests the economy as a whole will see more moderate hiring and wage growth in 2024.”
Josh Schafer is a reporter for Yahoo Finance.
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