U.S. job growth rebounded in September and the jobless rate slipped below 6%, suggesting the labor market is improving faster than previously thought and raising the prospect of an earlier-than-anticipated move by the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates.
Nonfarm payrolls grew a seasonally adjusted 248,000 last month, the fastest pace since June, the Labor Department said Friday. Revisions showed stronger job growth in prior months than previously estimated. The economy added 180,000 jobs in August instead of the initially reported 142,000. It created 243,000 in July, up from an earlier estimate of 212,000.
. . . Despite the latest improvement, the report indicated slack remains in the labor market and pointed to persistent problems facing the world’s largest economy. The share of Americans in the labor force fell again last month, hitting the lowest level in more than three decades. The labor-force participation rate fell to 62.7% from August’s 62.8%. Before the recession, the rate stood at 66%.
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