US employers added 29,000 jobs in September, far below the 90,000 Reuters poll forecast, and unemployment rose to 4.2 percent. Markets treated the report as reducing the chance of a Federal Reserve rate increase this month.
US job growth slowed more than expected in September, the Labor Department said on Friday. Nonfarm payrolls rose by 29,000, after a downwardly revised gain of 133,000 in August, Reuters reported. Economists polled by Reuters had expected about 90,000.
Unemployment rose to 4.2 percent from 4.1 percent as more people entered the labor force. Average hourly earnings increased 3.0 percent from a year earlier, after 3.1 percent in August. July payrolls were revised to a loss of 10,000 jobs, the second negative month this year, Reuters said.
The softer report reduced market expectations of a Federal Reserve rate increase at this month's meeting. Reuters reported that stocks on Wall Street were higher, the dollar eased, and Treasury yields rose after an initial fall. A separate Reuters market note said the S&P 500 opened about 0.9 percent higher and the Nasdaq about 1.2 percent higher after the release.
Moneycontrol, citing Reuters closing levels, reported the Dow ended up 250.40 points, or 0.49 percent, at 51,176.96; the S&P 500 up 56.27 points, or 0.73 percent, at 7,722.72; and the Nasdaq up 319.27 points, or 1.19 percent, at 27,190.86.
Economists told Reuters that seasonal-adjustment effects may have depressed the September count, while energy prices and supply strains linked to the US-Israel war with Iran could weigh on hiring later. The next test is whether October's data confirm a slower labor market or reverse the miss.