On December 6, 2024, the U.S. Department of Labor released a report showing that the U.S. added 227,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in November, surpassing economists’ prediction of 214,000 and causing the unemployment rate to edge up slightly to 4.2%, in line with market expectations.
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics also revised the October job growth numbers upward to 36,000 from the previously reported 12,000.
In terms of specific sectors, the healthcare industry led job growth with 54,000 new nonfarm payroll jobs in November. Other sectors with significant job growth included leisure and hospitality (53,000), government (33,000), transportation equipment manufacturing (32,000), and social assistance (19,000).
However, the retail sector shed 28,000 jobs. Some stores may have delayed hiring due to Thanksgiving falling later this year compared to previous years.
As an indicator of inflation, average hourly earnings increased by 0.4% in November to $35.61, a year-on-year increase of 4%. Both figures exceeded expectations by 0.1 percentage point.
Following the release of the jobs report, traders accelerated bets on a rate cut, with the market indicating a probability of over 88% for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates by 25 basis points at its policy meeting on December 18.
Earlier this week, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell mentioned that the overall strong economic conditions allowed him and his colleagues to exercise patience in making rate decisions. Other officials stated that they see a high likelihood of further rate cuts but would be influenced by changing economic data.