Jobs jump by 228K, 86th straight month of gains

U.S. employers added 228,000 jobs in November, beating expectations for an increase of 200,000 jobs after several months of hurricane-related volatility from which the economy is still recovering.

The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 4.1%, the lowest rate in nearly 17 years, and the labor force participation rate also stayed at 62.7% during the month. Average hourly earnings meanwhile increased from $26.53 to $26.55.

The jobs numbers come on the heels of a report Wednesday from payroll processing firm ADP, which revealed that 190,000 private sector jobs were added in November, down from 235,000 in October. According to the report, manufacturing added 40,000 jobs, the most in the ADP series history, which launched more than 15 years ago. Meanwhile, the construction sector shed 4,000.

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Since the 2016 presidential election, more than 1.77 million private sector jobs have been created, and the average hourly wages for the private sector has increased by 62 cents, or 2.4%.

National Economic Council Director Gary Cohn will join the FOX Business Network’s “Varney & Co.” at 10:05 a.m. ET for a full analysis of the latest data and what it means for U.S. workers and the economy.