Economic News

U.S. Economy Adds 250k Jobs in October, Wages Grow YOY

Despite a well reported hiring crunch and the President railing against the Federal Reserve for raising interest rates, October proved to be another strong month for job growth. This morning the Labor Department announced that the U.S. economy added 250,000 jobs last month. That figure comes in a bit higher than analysts had anticipated and kept the unemployment rate at a 49-year low of 3.7%.  However the real story for many was the wage growth observed in the new report.

In October, wages were up 5 cents, climbing to an average of $27.30. More importantly, that mark a 3.1% year over year increase, which amounts to $.83. As ABC News notes, this represents the fastest annual wage growth since 2009. Furthermore former economic advisor to Vice President Joe Biden, Jared Bernstein, pointed out that this increase outpaces inflation and represents “real gains!” This led Bernstein to tweet that the October summary was “Pretty much everything you could want in a monthly jobs report.”

As you’d expect, President Trump took to the Twitter this morning to celebrate the latest numbers. Trump tweeted, “Wow! The U.S. added 250,000 Jobs in October – and this was despite the hurricanes. Unemployment at 3.7%. Wages UP! These are incredible numbers.” With midterm elections just around the corner, the Commander in Chief made sure to tag his tweet in support of his party, adding “Keep it going, Vote Republican!”

Ironically the strong jobs report could actually come back to bite Trump as it all but ensures that the Federal Reserve will follow through with plans to raise interest rates again next month. In case you missed it, the President has been critical of the Fed’s rate hikes, even suggesting that the agency was “going loco.” Beyond the expected December increase, some are now questioning how much further the Fed will raise rates next year.

Elsewhere another interesting stat from this month’s report — as noted by the Chicago Sun-Times — is the fact that Hispanic unemployment fell to its lowest rate since 1973: 4.4%. Meanwhile teenage (ages 16 to 19) unemployment’s 11.9% rate also represents a historic low not seen since 1969. The Sun-Times also notes that unemployment rates among veterans who served anytime after 9/11 fell to 3.1% in October, but was one-tenth of a point off from the record seen in July.

The consensus surrounding the October jobs report is that it was strong all around. From better-than-expected job numbers to, as Bernstein put it, “real gains!” in wages, this could have some economic bears thinking twice. Of course the real question now is will these figures have an effect on the midterm election result? We’ll have to wait until Tuesday to find out.

Other Articles by Jonathan Dyer