November’s Numbers are Down

After adding 172,000 jobs in October, things quieted down in November according to the November jobs report from the Department of Labor.  Some economists were predicting job growth as high as 150,000 but early numbers show a seasonally adjusted gain of 39,000 jobs.  In order to keep pace with the growing job market, the economy needs to add approximately 125,000 jobs, so this anemic gain was accompanied by a small bump up in the unemployment rate which returned to 9.8%.

Jobs reports are frequently amended down the line.  Job gains are normalized by the season and data from past years is used to make those adjustments.  Because the last two Novembers have been particularly volatile, these numbers could change significantly.