Beaten down

22 October 2013 By Martin Hutchinson

With only 126,000 new private-sector jobs, delayed September data were below ADP numbers released earlier. Labor force participation remained at 1978 levels. As another weak report is due soon and Congress dithers on fiscal policy, the Fed won’t be inclined to taper bond-buying.

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The U.S. economy added 148,000 jobs in September, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics that was delayed two-and-a-half weeks and finally released on Oct. 22. The unemployment rate declined by 0.1 percentage points to 7.2 percent. The labor force participation rate remained flat at 63.2 percent, a post-1978 low. Previous months’ data were revised by a net 9,000 employment gains. The ADP survey, released on Oct. 2, had showed 166,000 private sector job gains.
Employment in construction rose by 20,000, in wholesale trade by 16,000, in transportation and warehousing by 18,000, in professional and business services by 32,000 and in government by 22,000.
Over the past year, the U.S. economy has gained 1,339,000 jobs but has lost a net 442,000 part-time jobs.

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