September Jobs Report: 119,000 Added, Rate at 4.4%

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its long-delayed September jobs report on Thursday, revealing that employers added 119,000 nonfarm payroll positions, more than double the 50,000 anticipated by economists. The report, postponed for seven weeks due to a 43-day federal government shutdown that halted data collection, also showed the unemployment rate rising to 4.4 percent, the highest level since October 2021.

The shutdown furloughed federal workers responsible for surveying businesses, creating a gap in economic data that left investors, policymakers and businesses without timely insights into labor market trends. As a result, the Labor Department will not issue a full October report and plans to combine partial October figures with November data for a release on December 16. This delay comes at a critical juncture, as the Federal Reserve prepares for its December 9-10 meeting to decide on potential interest rate adjustments.

While the headline job growth exceeded expectations, deeper analysis painted a mixed picture of a cooling labor market. Revisions to prior months indicated weaker performance than initially reported: August's payrolls were adjusted downward to a...