NEW DELHI, November 7: US employers added 165,000 jobs in October 2026, more than three times the average monthly gain of the past year, and the unemployment rate held at 4.1%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said on Friday. Earlier estimates for August and September were also revised up by a combined 84,000 jobs.
Key highlights
- Payrolls: up 165,000 in October, against an average of 48,000 a month over the previous 12 months.
- Unemployment rate: 4.1%, with 7.1 million people unemployed; the rate has stayed between 4.1% and 4.3% since March.
- Wages: average hourly earnings rose 14 cents, or 0.4%, to $38.00, and were up 3.1% from a year earlier.
- Revisions: August’s gain was raised to 186,000 from 133,000 and September’s to 60,000 from 29,000.
- Leaders: professional and business services (+70,000), health care (+42,000) and transportation and warehousing (+25,000).
| Sector | Jobs added in October |
|---|---|
| Professional and business services | +70,000 |
| Health care | +42,000 |
| Transportation and warehousing | +25,000 |
| Manufacturing | +19,000 |
| Total nonfarm payrolls | +165,000 |
Where the jobs came from
Professional and business services added 70,000 jobs, well above its average monthly gain of 15,000, led by professional, scientific and technical services (+33,000). Health care added 42,000, including 16,000 in hospitals and 11,000 in home health care. Transportation and warehousing added 25,000, mostly couriers and messengers (+17,000). Manufacturing gained 19,000, including 7,000 in computer and electronic products, and has added 101,000 jobs since a low in December 2025. Other major industries, including construction, retail, information, finance, leisure and hospitality and government, changed little.
The household survey
The labour force participation rate was 61.9% and the share of the population in work 59.3%, both little changed. The number of people working part time because they could not find full-time work rose by 339,000 to 4.8 million. Long-term unemployment, people jobless for 27 weeks or more, stood at 2.0 million, or 27.6% of the unemployed. The unemployment rate for Asian Americans was 2.8%.
Our calculation
- October’s 165,000 gain is about 3.4 times the 12-month average of 48,000.
- With the revisions, payrolls grew by an average of about 137,000 a month in August–October.
- Professional and business services and health care together made up about 68% of October’s gain.
What it means for India and Asia
A firmer US job market supports American demand for goods and services from Asia, from Indian IT services to electronics made in East Asia. It also matters for interest rates: steady hiring and wage growth of about 3% give the US Federal Reserve less reason to cut rates quickly, which tends to support the dollar and can put pressure on Asian currencies, including the rupee. The report came at the end of a volatile week for markets, described in our explainer on the US stock sell-off, and days after the midterm elections covered in our results report.
What to watch
- The November jobs report, scheduled for Friday, December 4, 2026, at 8:30 a.m. Eastern time.
- US inflation figures and the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision.
- Whether the rise in involuntary part-time work continues.
The US Department of Labor’s Frances Perkins Building in Washington. The Bureau of Labor Statistics is part of the department. Image: US Department of Labor, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Photo source · Licence
Sources
The Business Desk covers markets, the economy, companies and personal finance. Stories are checked against at least two credible sources before publication.
