U.S. adds 165,000 jobs in October, exceeding forecasts

Investing.com · Scott Kanowsky · 2026-11-06 13:36 UTC

U.S. adds 165,000 jobs in October, exceeding forecasts

Investing.com - The U.S. economy added far more jobs than anticipated in October, while the unemployment rate dipped, in a sign of a robust labor market that could bolster arguments for a Federal Reserve interest rate hike next month.

Nonfarm payrolls jumped to 165,000, rising from an upwardly revised total of 60,000 in September and topping economists’ expectations of 65,000. Job gains increased in professional and business services, health care, transportation and warehousing, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a statement on Friday.

Despite pressures from energy-fueled inflation sparked by the Iran war, as well as worries that developments in artificial intelligence will lead to widespread job losses, the American labor market has remained broadly resilient. The labor force participation rate ticked up slightly to 61.9%, continuing to rebound from a July low. Layoffs have been historically low and job openings climbing, data earlier this week showed. First-time claims for jobless benefits, one of the most up-to-date trackers of the health of labor market, also sank to a 57-year trough last week.

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