The U.S. Jobs Data for November showed signs of encouragement, with 199,000 new job creations during the month. The jobless rate was 3.7%, 200 basis points below the predicted 3.9%, as the labor force participation rate increased.

The numbers for nonfarm, seasonally adjusted jobs beat the of 190,000 new jobs Dow Jones estimate for the period.

Healthcare Leads the Way

The healthcare industry created the most jobs, 77,000, during the month. It was followed by 49,000 new jobs in the government, 40,000 in the hospitality industry and 28,000 in manufacturing. The number also included the actors and automotive employees returning from strikes.

The retail sector, however, reported a loss of 38,000 jobs, with 50% of the cut coming from department stores. Warehousing and transportation industries also experienced 5,000 job losses.

The unemployment duration also dropped sharply to the lowest levels since February, reducing to an average of 19.4 weeks.

High-Interest Rates Remains Concerning

Retail sales rose 2.5% on a year-over-year basis. However, there was a slight 0.1% decline on a month-over-month basis. Experts believe that the higher interest rates could negatively affect spending from the common household.

Fed data shows that the net household wealth lowered by $1.3 trillion to $151 trillion due to stock exchange fluctuations during the third quarter. Household debt increased 2.5%, in line with the past several quarters.

More By This Author: