U.S. hiring recovers sharply in October, non-farm payrolls add 250k new jobs

Hiring in the U.S. recovered sharply in the month of October, as non-farm payrolls added 250k new jobs in the economy. September had recorded a modest 118k gain, which was held back by the effect of Hurricane Florence. The jobless rate remained at its cycle low of 3.7 percent. The overall labor force participation rate rose by two ticks to 62.9 percent; however, it has remained widely unchanged over the past year.

Delving into details, both goods and services sector hiring accelerated in October. In services, strength was seen in health care, transportation and warehousing and professional and business services. Hiring in leisure and hospitality also rebounded in October after being held back by Hurricane Florence in September.

In the meantime, strength in the goods-producing sector came in both manufacturing and construction. The closely monitored measure of wage growth rose 0.2 percent sequentially. On a year-on-year basis, wages rose 3.2 percent, a new post-recession high.

Today’s report is a positive report. Hiring rebounded back from a hurricane-dampened September. The number of Americans with jobs comparative to the population reached a new post-recession high. There is little doubt that the full employment half of the Fed’s dual mandate is right on track, noted TD Economics in a research report. The employment report for October is in line with another rate hike in December.

At 16:00 GMT the FxWirePro's Hourly Strength Index of US Dollar was neutral at 16.2526. For more details on FxWirePro's Currency Strength Index, visit http://www.fxwirepro.com/currencyindex