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Jobs a little better than projected, BUT!
Jobs grow more than expected
November jobs growth slows but edges higher than estimates; unemployment remains unchanged rather than expected increase.
December 7 2007: 8:52 AM EST
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Employers added fewer workers to U.S. payrolls in November, according to a closely-watched government reading on labor market strength released Friday that still came in a bit stronger than Wall Street expectations.
The net gain in payrolls came in at 94,000 in November, after a revised 170,000 gain in October. Economists surveyed by Briefing.com had forecast a 70,000 in workers in the latest reading. The September reading was revised lower by 52,000 jobs.
The job growth came from the service sector as manufacturing lost 11,000, while construction employment fell by 24,000.
The unemployment rate stayed at 4.7 percent reported for October. Economists had been forecasting a rise to 4.8 percent.
The average hourly wages rose 8 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $17.63. It was the biggest one-month percentage gain since April 2006, and well above the forecast of a 0.3 percent rise, or the revised 0.1 percent increase for October.
The increase left seasonally-adjusted wages up 3.8 percent over the last 12 months. That's a bit better than the 3.5 percent rise in retail prices for the 12 months ending in October, according to a separate Labor Department estimate.
The jobs report is being particularly closely watched this month, as there have been mixed signs about whether the U.S. economy is at risk of falling into recession next year. Concerns about recession have raised expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates for the third straight time at its meeting Tuesday.
But the slightly better than expected job growth, coupled with the jump in wages, could limit central bankers to a quarter-point cut, rather than the half-point decrease that some investors and economists had been looking for.
http://money.cnn.com/2007/12/07/news...ion=2007120708
Originally Posted by nnuut
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