The US economy added 261,000 jobs in October, the Labor Department reported on Friday.
The latest figures are down slightly from September, but are still well above economists’ forecasts of 190,000 job additions.
Despite high inflation, rising interest rates, slowing economic growth and growing fears of a 2023 recession, the U.S. labor market remains resilient and has delivered strong job gains for another month. I was.
Below are the sectors that have added the most workers and those that are struggling to keep pace.
Healing Market for Healthcare Professionals
The health care sector led the U.S. with an increase of 53,000 workers last month, according to the Labor Department. His 31,000 worker additions in doctors’ offices and hospital outpatient departments accounted for most of the industry’s increase and helped deliver a better year for the struggling healthcare sector. rice field.
Employment in the healthcare sector will rebound in 2022, with an average of 47,000 new jobs added each month this year, compared to 9,000 per month in 2021.
Economists say a combination of rising demand for non-emergency-related health services, which were put on the backburner during the pandemic, and a rapid rise in wages for health workers have helped the sector recover.
Strong professional and technical services
The US last month added 43,000 workers to a wide range of professional and technical services, including consultants, architects, engineers and technicians.
Increased employment in this sector could be a useful sign of where the economy is headed, as demand for these services is often higher when businesses are expanding.
Professional and technical services employment growth slowed slightly in 2022, but strong growth in October is yet another indication of how resilient the U.S. economy has been in the face of many factors geared toward slowing down. One sign.
“The jobs data shows how resilient the labor market is in the face of stubbornly high inflation and sharp interest rate hikes so far this year,” said Kaylin Birch, global economist at the Economic Intelligence Unit in an analysis on Friday. It highlights what you have,” he said.
Factories continue to build more workforce
U.S. manufacturing has picked up momentum since early 2021, continuing to steadily add jobs even in the face of rising interest rates, supply chain disruptions, and consumer disengagement over the past year.
Manufacturers added 32,000 jobs in October, according to the Labor Department. This was just below his average monthly increase of 37,000 this year. The sector faces serious threats from rising interest rates and supply shortages, but has held up strongly thanks to excess demand that still lingers from the depths of the pandemic.
“Factory jobs continue to be a credible engine of job growth, especially for workers not seeking a four-year degree,” said Scott Paul, president of Alliance for American Manufacturing on Friday. said in a statement that the past year’s investments in infrastructure, clean energy, electric vehicles and semiconductors should continue to benefit jobs next year and beyond.
“But there are threats to this growth: an overzealous Fed, global headwinds, and unwelcome pressure to lower tariffs and Made in America requirements.”
Offering plenty of options for leisure and hospitality
The leisure and hospitality sector is not a source of growth like last year, when it added an average of 196,000 jobs each month. But restaurants, bars, entertainment venues and lodging facilities are still adding 35,000 jobs last month as they try to make up for a massive shortage of workers.
Leisure and hospitality are the sectors hardest hit by the pandemic, still with a staggering 1.1 million workers below total pre-pandemic employment. Since the advent of the COVID-19 vaccine, those who have stayed in or joined the industry have found fewer colleagues to help them and less time to meet the surge in demand while dealing with high inflation in the food sector. I’m having a hard time.
“Given continued demand for workers from businesses, it is unlikely that job growth will decline sharply in the near term,” Nationwide senior economist Ben Ayers said in an analysis on Friday. said.
“Employment growth should remain strong through 2023, although it will continue to slow gradually.”
Transportation is moving, but warehouse jobs are hard to find
Job growth in the transportation and warehousing sector slowed sharply in October, adding just 8,000 jobs this year after adding an average of 25,000 jobs each month. But the split between the two is a window into how the US economy is changing.
The industry added 13,000 workers in trucking, 7,000 couriers and messengers, and another 4,000 in air transportation. His three parts of the sector still suffer from labor shortages and disruptions in his chain of supply.
But warehousing jobs fell by 20,000 in October as big retailers continued to pull back on investments they made early in the pandemic, and delays and shortages in shipments made it difficult to satisfy customers.
Indeed’s director of economic research, Nick Bunker, said in an analysis on Friday, “The pandemic-era winners, warehousing and storage, have lost 20,000 jobs a month, likely as a result of a shift away from commodity consumption. lost,” he said.
The financial sector continues to decline
Rising interest rates and growing fears of a recession have hit financial markets hard. Job seekers in this industry are not doing so well.
The financial sector added just 3,000 jobs in October, but the Labor Department doesn’t see this as a significant increase in jobs. Rental and leasing services lost 8,000 jobs last month alone, likely due to a slowdown in the housing market due to higher mortgage rates.
Real estate brokers, mortgage lenders and other companies that rely on strong home sales have laid off workers and are preparing for tougher job cuts as the housing market continues to slow. Trading companies are also considering layoffs as rising interest rates are also curbing investment activity.
Mining, construction and retail also saw little employment growth in October.
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