According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 263,000 non-farming jobs were created in the country in November, down from the 284,000 jobs added in October but still above market expectations of 200,000. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 3.7%.
According to the data, there were notable job gains in leisure and hospitality as well as in health care and government. On the other hand, decreases were recorded in retail trade, transportation and warehousing activities.
Unemployment rate remains unchanged
The growth of the labor market cooled, but somewhat less than expected. The unemployment rate remains in the 3.5%-3.7% range, where it has been since March. The number of unemployed workers also remained mostly unchanged over the past month at roughly six million.
Among the unemployed, the number of people who lost permanent employment was 1.4 million in November, an increase of 127,000 from October. The number of temporarily unemployed was 803,000, practically unchanged from the previous month.
The number of long-term unemployed (those out of work for 27 weeks or more) rose to 1.2 million in November, and this group now represents 20.6% of all job seekers.
