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 Nonfarm payrolls increased 211,000 last month, the Labor Department
said on Friday. September and October data was revised to show
35,000 more jobs than previously reported.
The unemployment rate held at a 7-1/2-year low of 5 percent, even as
people returned to the labor force in a sign of confidence in the
jobs market. The jobless rate is in a range many Fed officials see
as consistent with full employment and has dropped seven-tenths of a
percentage point this year.
The closely watched employment report came a day after Fed Chair
Janet Yellen struck an upbeat note on the economy when she testified
before lawmakers, describing how it had largely met the criteria the
U.S. central bank has set for the Fed's first rate hike since June
2006.
Yellen said the economy needs to create just under 100,000 jobs a
month to keep up with growth in the working age population. The
Fed's policy-setting committee will meet on Dec. 15-16.
Economists polled by Reuters had forecast nonfarm payrolls rising
200,000 last month and the unemployment rate steady at 5.0 percent.
The second month of strong job gains should allay fears the economy
has hit a soft patch, after reports showing tepid consumer spending
in October and a slowdown in services industry growth in November.
Manufacturing contracted in November for the first time in three
years.
Though wage growth slowed last month, economists say that was mostly
payback for October's outsized gains, which were driven by a
calendar quirk. Anecdotal evidence, as well as data on labor-related
costs, suggest that tightening job market conditions are starting to
put upward pressure on wages.
Average hourly earnings increased four cents or 0.2 percent from 0.4
percent in October. That lowered the year-on-year reading to 2.3
percent from 2.5 percent in October. The average workweek, however,
dipped to 34.5 hours from 34.6.
Other labor market measures that Fed officials are eyeing as they
consider lifting the benchmark overnight interest rate from near
zero were mixed.
The labor force participation rate, or the share of working-age
Americans who are employed or at least looking for a job, rose to
62.5 percent from a near 38-year low of 62.4 percent.
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A broad measure of joblessness that includes people who want to work
but have given up searching and those working part-time because they
cannot find full-time employment rose one-tenth of a percentage
point to 9.9 percent.
Employment gains in November were broad-based, though manufacturing
shed 1,000 positions and mining lost 11,000 jobs.
Manufacturing has been crippled by a strong dollar, efforts by
businesses to reduce bloated inventory and spending cuts by energy
companies scaling back well drilling and exploration in response to
sharply lower oil prices.
Mining employment has declined by 123,000 since reaching a peak in
December 2014. Three quarters of the job losses over this period
have been in support activities for mining.
Oilfield services provider Schlumberger <SLB.N> this week announced
another round of job cuts in addition to 20,000 layoffs already
reported this year. The company said it expected the slowdown in
drilling activity to continue in 2016.
Construction payrolls increased 46,000 last month. With 163,000 jobs
added last month, the services sector accounted for the bulk of the
increase in employment. Retail jobs rose 30,700 and transportation
and warehousing employment rebounded after two straight months of
declines.
(Reporting by Lucia Mutikani; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
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