Nonfarm payroll employment continued to trend up in November (94,000), and the unemployment rate held at 4.7 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Job growth continued in professional and technical services, health care, and food services. Employment continued to decline in manufacturing and also fell in several housing-related industries, including construction, credit intermediation, and real estate. Average hourly earnings rose by 8 cents over the month.
let's look at little deeper into the report.
Construction dropped 24,000. That makes a whole lot more sense considering the housing market's overall situation. This number has been remarkably resilient despite the housing market slowdown. I think the primary reason is the shift to commercial real estate development, but I could be wrong.
Manufacturing dropped 11,000. While the US has lost a ton of manufacturing jobs, it has also gained a lot in productivity. And then there's the exports picture which is incredibly strong. Simply put, I think US manufacturing is doing more with less.
Retail added 24,000. Thank the Ghost of Christmas past.
Professional services added 30,000 -- a nice bump. Government added 30,000 and leisure and hospitality added 26,000.
This report isn't great, but it's not terrible either. All in all I'd call it fair.
