Surprise surge in new US jobs in September
Hiring in the US surged unexpectedly last month, easing fears that the economy might be heading for a sudden, sharp downturn.
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00:00Hiring in the US surged unexpectedly last month, easing fears that the economy might
00:05be heading for a sudden, sharp downturn. Employers in the US added 254,000 jobs in September,
00:13much more than expected, while the jobless rate dipped from 4.2% to 4.1%, the Labor Department
00:20said. That was the strongest gain since March, and was far higher than the roughly 150,000
00:27many analysts had forecast. President Joe Biden welcomed the report, one of the last
00:32major pieces of economic data that voters will receive before the presidential election.
00:38Surveys indicate public doubts about the economy have remained persistent,
00:42as a 20% rise in prices since 2021 weighs on sentiment. Over the past year, job growth has
00:50also slowed and the unemployment rate has been edging higher, though it remains at historically
00:55low levels. Last month, the US central bank cut interest rates by a bigger than usual 0.5
01:02percentage points, saying it wanted to avoid any further weakening in the labor market.
01:07But Friday's report showed solid wage gains and eased fears of a