WASHINGTON—The latest jobs report – with 155,000 jobs gained in November – was positive in terms of overall growth, but still fell below expectations, says NAFCU
Chief Economist and Vice President of Research Curt Long.
"The November jobs report was sturdy but uninspiring," said Long. "Job growth of 155,000 is around 50,000 shy of both the average monthly gain for 2018 and the expected gain for November. But the unemployment rate, labor force participation, and wage growth all remained steady. This keeps the Fed on track to raise rates later this month, but it also supports a likely downgrade in the number of rate hikes the committee projects for 2019 from three to just two."
The unemployment rate remained at 3.7% in November as the labor force expended 133,000 workers.
In other report data, private-sector payroll employment increased 161,000 jobs during November. The goods-producing sector increased 29,000 jobs, while the service sector increased 132,000 jobs. Public sector employment decreased 6,000 from the prior month.
Average hourly earnings increased six cents to $27.35 in November. Over the last 12 months, wages are up 3.1%, which matches the fastest growth since April 2009. Since 2009, year-over-year wage growth has averaged just 2.3%, Long noted.