guardian.co.uk, Friday 7 October 2011 15.00 BST
Non-farm payrolls show addition of 103,000 new jobs – exceeding Wall Street expectations by 43,000
The increase in employment partially reflected the return to payrolls of about 45,000 Verizon telecoms workers who had been on strike in August.Photograph: Chris Hondros/Getty Images
The US economy added 103,000 new jobs in September, the labour department said on Friday.
The increase was larger than the 60,000 expected by Wall Street economists but left the 9.1% unemployment rate unchanged. Futures rose sharply ahead of the US stock markets opening, as the better than expected non-farm payroll numbers cheered investors, while the FTSE 100 index in London, which had been flat, jumped more than 70 points on the news.
The increase in employment partially reflected the return to payrolls of about 45,000 Verizon telecoms workers who had been on strike in August. The number of unemployed people, at 14m, remained essentially unchanged in September. Since April, the rate has held in a narrow range from 9% to 9.2%.
The report was strengthened by revisions that showed 99,000 more jobs added in July and August than initially reported. Hourly earnings rebounded and the average work week also rose.
Next week, president Barack Obama will present his latest job package to Washington and has called for both sides to vote it through. The $447bn (£287bn) jobs bill will not pass without Republican support and Obama and Treasury secretary Tim Geithner have called for bipartisan cooperation this week.
September's jobs figures were boosted by 137,000 new jobs in the private sector, a sign of growing confidence among private employers. Average hourly earnings increased 0.2% to $23.12 in September, reversing a drop in August. Economists had been expecting a 0.2% gain.
But employment was held back as the government continued to shed jobs, axing another 34,000 in the month. The US Postal Service lost 5,000 jobs over the month. Local government employment declined by 35,000, and has fallen by 535,000 since September 2008.
The labour department said that the number of people employed part time for economic reasons rose to 9.3m in September. These individuals, also known as involuntary part-time workers, were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.
Professional and business services and healthcare were among the brighter areas of the economy as far as new jobs are concerned. Employment in professional and business services increased by 48,000 over the month and has grown by 897,000 since a recent low in September 2009.
Construction also appears to be picking up with employment up 26,000 over the month, after showing little movement since February. The Labour department said the increases were a result of new jobs in the non-residential construction industries, which includes heavy and civil construction. Mining employment continued to rise in September.
Manufacturing employment was little changed in September and has been essentially flat for the past two months. In retail, employment declined in electronic and appliance stores. Employment in wholesale trade, transportation and warehousing, financial activities, and leisure and hospitality changed little.
Via: http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2011/oct/07/us-job-numbers-rise-september
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