October’s jobs report is expected to show a rebound in hiring as Covid cases declined – By Patti Domm (CNBC) / Nov 4 2021
- The economy is expected to have added 450,000 jobs in October, according to estimates from Dow Jones. That’s up sharply from 194,000 in September.
- Hourly wages are expected to rise by 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. That will be an important number since the market is focused on inflation and whether it will continue to run hotter than expected.
- The jobs report is back in focus as a key input for the Fed, which announced plans to start tapering back its bond purchases this month. That opens the door to potential interest rate hikes next year, economists say.
Hiring is expected to have picked up at a solid pace, and wages likely continued to climb in October, as new Covid-19 cases receded and the economy improved.
Economists expect 450,000 jobs were added last month, up from just 194,000 in September, according to Dow Jones. The unemployment rate is expected to fall to 4.7% from 4.8%. Hourly wages are expected to have risen 0.4% in October for a year-over-year gain of 4.9%. That’s up from a pace of about 4.6% in September.
“We think a big constraint or headwind causing some of the slowdown we’ve seen in recent months was Covid-related, and now it seems the cases and hospitalizations are trending in the right direction,” Bank of America U.S. economist Alex Lin said. He expects restaurants, hotels and retailers to be among the businesses adding workers in big numbers.
