The latest employment situation report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), released Friday morning, showed that the economy added only 12,000 jobs in October, or 12% of the 100,000 additions expected. It’s the smallest gain in four years, since December 2020.
The average monthly job gain over the past year was 194,000 jobs, placing October’s 12,000 in context as lower than the norm.
The report “showed a material weakening in job growth,” EY Senior Economist Lydia Boussour told Entrepreneur in an emailed statement.
The less-than-expected job growth could be explained by Hurricane Helene, Hurricane Milton, and the dockworkers’ strike that happened for three days in early October.
“Employment declined in
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