The unemployment rate in the United States
edged up to 7.9 per cent in October, the Labour Department announced
Friday, even though payrolls grew by 171,000 jobs.
Unemployment had dipped in September to 7.8 per cent.
The jobless report is the last major economic statistic to be
released before Tuesday's presidential election.
Payroll growth somewhat exceeded expectations. The Bloomberg news
agency's survey of 91 economists this week produced a median forecast
of 125,000 for payroll growth.
The Labour Department's Bureau of Labour Statistics said that
Hurricane Sandy, which began affecting the Atlantic seaboard on
Sunday, had "no discernible effect" on the October data. The storm
affected at least a dozen states and caused major damage in New
Jersey and New York.
The bureau's household survey, which is used to produce the
seasonally adjusted unemployment rate, was completed before the storm
arrived. Participation rates in the parallel survey of employers,
from which the payroll figure is derived, were normal from storm-hit
regions.
