U.S. created only 29,000 jobs in September; 84,000 were expected
WHAT HAPPENED
U.S. created only 29,000 jobs in September, compared to the 84,000 expected. Unemployment rose to 4.2% and revisions erased 60,000 jobs from the previous two months.
WHY IT MATTERS
The labor market is cooling faster than thought: healthcare created fewer positions and the financial sector lost 7,000. Fewer jobs may reduce spending in stores and restaurants and increase pressure for the Federal Reserve to lower rates.
AND FOR YOUR PORTFOLIO
For a long-term investor, the data can move stocks, bonds, and currencies because it changes expectations about rates in the U.S. It can also be felt abroad through credit and the exchange rate of the dollar against the peso and the real.
💬 TELL IT LIKE THIS
“The U.S. is not suddenly stopping job creation, but it is hiring much less and revising previous figures downward.”