US adds more jobs than expected in October

Non-farm payrolls data released today showed 128,000 jobs were added last month, comfortably beating analysts’ expectations of 85,000 jobs added in October. The food services industry saw some of the most notable gains, while manufacturing employment fell. Overall, the data suggest that the labour market is still tight, consumer spending remains robust and companies are continuing to hold onto their workers. The data reinforces the Federal Reserve’s forward guidance on monetary policy, where they expressed, in their recent policy meeting, their intention to be patient with interest rate cutting for the time being. Global stocks picked up on the news, adding to gains made following the release of positive manufacturing data from China.