Economy adds 638K jobs in October, unemployment dips below 7 percent
By Sylvan Lane - 11/06/20 08:33 AM EST
The U.S added 638,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 6.9 percent in October, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.
The October jobs report showed the U.S. continuing to recover jobs lost to the coronavirus pandemic and slightly exceeded economists’ projections. Economists had expected the U.S. to gain roughly 600,000 jobs in October after adding 672,000 in September and seeing the unemployment rate fall to 7.9 percent, according to revised figures.
October’s decline in unemployment came as the labor force participation rate increased by 0.3 percentage points, meaning that a greater portion of Americans were both seeking and finding jobs last month than in September. The number of workers who permanently lost their jobs also stayed flat at 3.7 million, a welcome sign after several months of increases.
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https://thehill.com/policy/finance/524744-october-jobs-report