Friday jobs report to provide hiring snapshot days after midterms as Fed weighs rate increase

Hiring figures have shifted

The labor market has continued to grow, but monthly results have varied sharply. The United States added an average of about 68,000 jobs per month during the first nine months of the year, according to an Atlanta Federal Reserve analysis.

That average compares with 10,000 jobs per month in 2025. Economists forecast 59,000 new jobs in October, after 29,000 in September and 133,000 in the preceding month, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Inflation keeps pressure on Fed

Inflation stood at an annual rate of 3.7% in September, the latest month on record. That was more than one percentage point above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target.

The article says the Iran war pushed gasoline prices higher and inflation to a three-year peak in May. Inflation eased over the summer, while continued fighting kept price increases above pre-war levels.

Rate decision remains uncertain

Policymakers are assessing whether current rates are high enough to slow price increases. Market expectations put the chance of another quarter-point increase at the Fed’s December meeting at about 68%, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool.

Markets react after midterms

The report arrives as investors respond to the midterm election results. The Dow Jones Industrial Average had its strongest performance in more than a year on Wednesday, one day after the elections, but a Thursday selloff erased those gains.

Investors appeared to consider risks to the technology industry from newly empowered Democrats, the article said. The jobs figures will give policymakers and markets another measure of economic conditions.