September Jobs Report Blows Away Estimates

The Bureau of Labor Statistics released the September Nonfarm payroll report and it came in significantly better than expected. The report showed that 103,000 jobs were created during the month, versus estimates of 60,000. The unemployment rate remains at 9.1%, and average hourly earnings rose 0.2%. The gains were helped by the return of the 45,000 striking Verizon VZ jobs. The private sector created 137,000 jobs during the month, with the public sector losing 34,000 jobs. The average hourly work week was 34.3 hours versus estimates of 34.2 hours. There were significant revisions to both July and August, with July seeing an additional 42,000 jobs, while August was revised from 0 to 57,000 jobs. Futures are higher going into the start of trading. Dow futures are up 76 points, S&P futures are up 8.7 points, and NASDAQ futures are up 11.2 points. Here is the link for the full report.