september us payrolls contract in wake of harvey irma
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

as major hurricanes left workers idle

September US payrolls contract in wake of Harvey, Irma

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today September US payrolls contract in wake of Harvey, Irma

Salary figures in September 2017 fell short of analysts' predictions After of hurricane damage.
Washington - Arab Today

US payrolls contracted in September for the first time in seven years as major hurricanes left workers idle in southern states, but unemployment continued to fall, official data showed Friday.

The September numbers also sank far below the expectations of analysts, who had predicted hurricanes Harvey and Irma would slow but not reverse job creation -- which had until now been robust and uninterrupted during nearly a decade of economic recovery.

The new jobs numbers were likely to be unwelcome news to the White House even though President Donald Trump late last month acknowledged that the storms would probably dampen US economic activity.

Trump has vowed to create 25 million new jobs over a decade and the September report underscored how difficult attaining such a goal will be.

Economists said Friday that Hurricane Irma in particular -- which made landfall in Florida on September 10 just as federal workers were conducting their monthly employment survey -- caused significant distortions and sent the data in contradictory directions.

Total non-farm employment fell by 33,000 net positions for the month, with a steep drop-off in hiring at restaurants and bars, according to the Labor Department.

But the unemployment rate also fell another two tenths to 4.2 percent, its lowest level since February of 2001.

Analysts had been expecting a slower, but still positive result of 75,000. Instead, the September result ate into some of the employment gains from August, which was also below trend despite a small upward revision.

"Looking past the short-term hurricane disruptions, the US economy is in good shape, data have surprised to the upside recently and confidence is soaring," Mickey Levy of Berenberg Capital Markets said in a research note.

Unemployment fell even though job creation contracted because of differences in the way the Labor Department measures positions and unemployment. An employee unable to work due to bad weather will not be counted as unemployed. But the position will not count toward job creation if the worker goes unpaid.

And 1.5 million workers idled by bad weather were still counted as employed even if they retained their jobs but were unable to work -- the highest such level in 20 years.

- Wall Street unnerved -

Nevertheless, economists have said the effects of the storms -- which slammed into the economic hubs of Texas and Florida over a two-week period in late August and early September -- were likely to be transitory.

Average hourly earnings, a closely watched measure of wages which can point to looming inflation, popped by a surprising 0.5 percent to $26.55.

However, this may be another temporary, storm-related distortion: Those temporarily unable to work because of the storms are often lesser-paid workers, meaning average wages briefly appear higher.

Hiring at bars and restaurants, where workers are often not paid if they miss work, fell by 105,000 for the month.

Payroll employment in other sectors, such as mining, construction, manufacturing and financial services, saw little change over the month.

There were other signs of weakness, however, with a net downward revision to the prior two months of 38,000 positions.

September's surprise jobs contraction was unlikely to resolve disagreements among Federal Reserve policymakers, who have argued over the need to raise interest rates in the absence of inflationary pressures.

"The Federal Reserve has indicated that the distortions created by the hurricanes are ultimately little more than noise in the overall US economy," economist Diane Swonk wrote in an analysis of the September report.

"I disagree but I don't vote" on the Fed policymaking panel, she added.

"We expecting the Fed to raise rates one last time before Chair Yellen likely steps down on February 3."

Wall Street investors took the news badly, with all three major stock indices in the red towards 1600 GMT. The broad-based S&P 500 had given up 0.3 percent while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average and tech heavy Nasdaq were both between 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent lower.

Source: AFP

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

september us payrolls contract in wake of harvey irma september us payrolls contract in wake of harvey irma

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

september us payrolls contract in wake of harvey irma september us payrolls contract in wake of harvey irma

 



GMT 02:01 2014 Wednesday ,19 November

Qatari Minister Hamad bin Ali al-Attiyah heads to USA

GMT 21:45 2017 Saturday ,28 January

Unity is cornerstone of India's strength

GMT 14:38 2017 Tuesday ,03 October

Tennis: 'Very happy' Nadal survives Beijing scare

GMT 08:45 2017 Thursday ,12 October

France, Qatar neck-and-neck

GMT 09:36 2017 Saturday ,18 November

Serine will not participate in coming Ramadan

GMT 08:08 2017 Monday ,20 November

Dana Hamadan happy for "The Flood" Success

GMT 05:38 2017 Thursday ,09 November

Slash antibiotic use in animals

GMT 12:44 2014 Saturday ,24 May

Iran actress Hatami apologises for Cannes kiss

GMT 13:12 2013 Saturday ,16 November

Whistler to open early

GMT 12:26 2018 Tuesday ,16 January

FIT DELIS appoints BrandBru

GMT 10:10 2018 Sunday ,14 January

Australia Governor arrives at Ain Tineh

GMT 09:43 2018 Monday ,08 January

Stylish Hirscher clinches Swiss double slalom

GMT 11:45 2017 Friday ,13 January

'I'm not ashamed' says Paris attacks suspect

GMT 17:13 2014 Tuesday ,07 January

Types of beds for modern bedrooms

GMT 07:51 2017 Saturday ,30 December

Deadly NY blaze sparked by boy playing with stove

GMT 04:21 2017 Thursday ,21 December

Politically divided Spain united by El Clasico rivalry

GMT 16:38 2015 Wednesday ,30 December

Depardieu to play Stalin in new film

GMT 08:13 2015 Sunday ,22 March

UK singer, songwriter Jackie Trent dies at 74

GMT 09:36 2015 Sunday ,25 January

EYECANDY Rainbow Volume S Brush launches in the UK
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2025 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday