After the job reports for October and November were delayed by the government shutdown, the data is finally in, and it’s mixed. CNBC’s Jeff Cox reports:
Nonfarm payrolls grew slightly more than expected in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Tuesday in numbers delayed by the government shutdown.
Job growth totaled 64,000 for the month, better than the Dow Jones estimate for 45,000.
The unemployment rate rose to 4.6%, more than expected.
In addition to the November report, the BLS released an abbreviated October count that showed payrolls down 105,000. While there was no official estimate, Wall Street economists were largely expecting a decline following a surprise increase of 108,000 in September.
The October slump came from a steep fall in government employment as deferred layoffs institute earlier this year took effect. Government payrolls were off 162,000 for the month, and fell declined an additional 6,000 in November.
Action Line: Caution should be used when reading the tea leaves of jobs reports that are distorted by a government shutdown and delays. The jobs reports are always measuring minute amounts of growth or contraction among a massive workforce, so putting too much emphasis on one report or another is a risk. When you want to talk about economic risk and your portfolio, email me at ejsmith@yoursurvivalguy.com. And click here to subscribe to my free monthly Survive & Thrive letter.
