The U.S. added 254,000 jobs in September, and the unemployment rate ticked lower to 4.1 percent, according to new Labor Department data released Friday.
The September jobs report blew past economist expectations, which foresaw 140,000 jobs added and a jobless rate of 4.2 percent.
The September jobs report comes roughly a month before the election, in which Vice President Harris is closing the gap with former President Trump on who voters trust more to handle the economy.
It also comes just two weeks after the Federal Reserve opted to cut interest rates for the first time since it began its aggressive rate hike campaign more than two years ago.
The central bank slashed rates by 50 basis points to a range of 4.75 to 5 percent, as inflation comes within striking distance of the Fed’s target and the labor market shows signs of weakening.
The Fed began its inflation flight in early 2022 as inflation spiked, eventually reaching a 40-year high of 9.1 percent in June of that year. The central bank repeatedly raised rates through July 2023 and held rates steady until this September.
Inflation has eased significantly over the past two years. As of August, consumer prices were up just 2.5 percent year-over-year.
However, the labor market, which has remained remarkably strong in the face of the Fed’s rate hiking campaign, also began to show signs of weakening this summer. The July jobs report came in much cooler than expected, with just 114,000 jobs gained and unemployment rising to 4.3 percent.
The weakening led to some concerns that the Fed had waited too long to ease rates. However, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has pushed back on the suggestion that the central bank was behind the curve.
“We don’t think we’re behind,” Powell said at a press conference following the rate cut decision last month. “We think this is timely, but I think you can take this as a sign of our commitment not to get behind.”
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