Employers likely added 40,000 jobs in November as government releases report delayed by shutdown

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3. What to expect from the jobs report today

Business > Economy
6 min read

What to expect from the jobs report today

By Alicia Wallace
1 hr 59 min ago


Job seekers speak with recruiters during the SacJobs Career job fair in Sacramento, California, on November 13.

The November jobs report is landing at an odd time – on a Tuesday in mid-December, instead of (what’s usually) the first Friday of the month – due to the lingering impact of the historically long government shutdown.

The 43-day federal funding lapse resulted in a flash-freeze of crucial economic data at a critical juncture for American businesses and households. ... The slow, steady thaw of deferred data over the past month, is building more into a deluge this week: In the next three days, major reports on retail sales, inflation and the labor market will be released.

And the latter two come with a bit of a holiday bonus: The jobs report and the Consumer Price Index release for November both will be packaged with roughly half of October’s data. ... If it wasn’t so unprecedented, it would be quite fitting in a season filled with buy-one-get-one-50%-off deals.

Tuesday morning’s jobs report is expected to show that just 40,000 jobs were added last month and the unemployment rate held steady at 4.4% – historically low but still higher than in recent years. ... Still, economists say the report could be more than a little muddled this time around.

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