Jobs Report for October Easily Beats Expectations: 128K Jobs Created

GM Strike Not Enough to Cool Job Creation, Black Unemployment Falls to New All-Time Low

The U.S. economy added 128,000 jobs in October and the unemployment rate hit barely edged higher to 3.6%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported.

Forecasts for total nonfarm payrolls ranged from a low of 50,000 to a high of 155,000. The consensus forecast was 90,000. Forecasts for the unemployment rate ranged from a low of 3.5% to a high of 3.7%. The consensus forecast was 3.6%.

The black unemployment rate fell again to a new all-time at 5.4%, even though the labor force participation rate held steady at 62.4.

Overall, the civilian labor force participation rate ticked higher to 63.3, the highest level of participation since August 2013. Asian participation soared from 64.1 to 65.4. White participation held steady at 63.2, while Hispanic participation rose from 67 to 67.3.

Total nonfarm private payroll rose by 131,000 in October, easily beating the consensus forecast. Forecasts ranged from a low of 40,000 to a high of 156,000. The consensus forecast was also 90,000.

Wages, or average hourly earnings (AHE) for all employees on private nonfarm payrolls, rose by 6 cents to $28.18. Over the past 12 months, average hourly earnings have increased by 3.0%.

Forecasts for wages ranged from a low of 2.8% to a high of 3.2%. The consensus forecast was 3.0%.

Average hourly earnings of private-sector production and nonsupervisory employees — meaning, workers — rose by 4 cents to $23.70.

Big Upward Revisions to Prior Two Months

There were significant upward revisions to job creation over the last two months.

The change in total nonfarm payroll employment for August was revised up by 51,000 from +168,000 to +219,000, and the change for September was revised up by 44,000 from +136,000 to +180,000.

With these revisions, employment gains in August and September combined were 95,000 more than previously reported. After revisions, job gains have averaged 176,000 over the last 3 months.