The US jobs market added 119,000 jobs in September, according to the latest monthly jobs report, which was delayed by six weeks due to the shutdown of the federal government.
Amid heightened uncertainty surrounding the strength of the US economy, the much-anticipated reading was higher than the 51,000 jobs expected by analysts to be added in September.
The unemployment rate, meanwhile, ticked up from 4.3% to 4.4%: its highest level since 2021. And a previous estimate for jobs growth in August was downgraded – revealing an unexpected decline in the US workforce.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) revised down previous readings for July and August, which had already raised fears that growth in the labor market had stalled in recent months.
The agency now estimates that the US economy added 72,000 jobs in July, down from 79,000, and shed 4,000 jobs in August, down from growth of 22,000.
Trading on Wall Street was volatile. Boosted by strong results from chipmaker Nvidia, US markets rose initially. The benchmark S&P 500 was up 1.7% during the morning session in New York, while the technology-focused Nasdaq Composite climbed 2.1%.
However, the rally later fizzled as investor jitters resurfaced. By early afternoon the S&P was down 0.7% and the Nasdaq was down 0.9%. Nvidia was also down 0.9%.
September’s jobs report was initially scheduled to be released in October, only to be delayed by the shutdown. ADP’s unofficial private sector jobs report for September noted a loss of 29,000 jobs; its report for October pointed to an increase of 42,000 jobs.
The complete official jobs report for October will not be released, the BLS said on Wednesday, as a result of the prolonged shutdown, during which data collection and processing was not conducted. Official data on the number of jobs created or lost in October will be released alongside the full report for November, in mid-December, according to the BLS.
With policymakers at the Federal Reserve due to convene for their latest interest rate-setting meeting in the coming weeks, Thursday’s data release strengthened expectations that they will probably sit on their hands and keep rates on hold.
Nancy Vanden Houten, lead economist at Oxford Economics, said: “The September jobs report may be backward looking but offers reassurance that the labor market wasn’t crumbling before the government shutdown. There is nothing in the data to warrant a change to our forecast for the Federal Reserve to leave rates unchanged at the December meeting.”
Sagging job numbers incited Donald Trump to fire the BLS commissioner Erika McEntarfer in August, following a weak July jobs report, as Trump made baseless claims the numbers were “rigged” to make him and Republicans look bad.
On Thursday, Elizabeth Warren, the Massachusetts Democratic senator, said: “After sitting on it for weeks, Donald Trump finally released the September jobs report showing the unemployment rate is up. Businesses have announced a record number of layoffs, and hiring has slowed since Trump took office. It’s not surprising that he’s now refusing to release the October jobs report, despite the administration’s legal obligation to publish employment data each month.
“Trump says he wants lower interest rates, but is withholding the very data the Federal Reserve needs to make that decision next month. And it’ll be working families who will pay the price.”
