From TD comments today, US hiring slows Hiring slowed sharply in October, a sign the economy is cooling this fall following a hot stretch over the summer.
U.S. employers added 150,000 jobs in October, down from the previous month’s revised gain of 297,000, the Labor Department said Friday. That was the smallest gain since June, with automakers having around 33,000 fewer workers on payroll because of the United Auto Workers strike. The unemployment rate rose to 3.9% from 3.8% the prior month.
The numbers point to an economy confronting higher borrowing costs following the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate increases earlier this year, as well as persistent inflation and wars in Europe and the Middle East. A downshift in job growth could ease inflation pressures, making further Fed’s rate increases less likely.
Since last year, Fed officials have raised rates to a 22-year high to bring inflation under control. But since raising them in July, they have held rates steady, including at their meeting this week, as price pressures eased.
U.S. stock futures rose and Treasury yields fell. Investors were hoping for an easing of job gains as a sign that the economy is slowing and the Fed can stop tightening.