U.S. employers got back on the hiring track and added a net 215,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in November, the government reported Friday, demonstrating the economy's resilience after devastating storms and surging energy costs.
The job gain, the latest in a series of positive economic data, could bolster consumers' confidence entering the peak holiday shopping season, analysts said. And it could signal that workers may enjoy stronger wage gains as the employment market tightens.
"The growth in jobs should help consumer spending remain on an upward trend even as the housing market is starting to cool," said Lynn Reaser, an economist with Bank of America in Boston.
The November job increase, paced by a jump in construction employment related to post-hurricane rebuilding, far surpassed subpar gains of 44,000 positions in October and 17,000 in September, the Labor Department reported. Job creation in those months was revised upward by a net 13,000.
The gain, which met economists' expectations, was the best showing since July and beat the 196,000 monthly average increase in the first eight months of this year. The unemployment rate remained unchanged at 5%, just off the four-year low of 4.9% set in August.
The job boost is the latest evidence that the U.S. economy has shaken off the ravages of hurricanes Katrina and Rita in the Gulf Coast and consequent higher gasoline and natural gas prices.
The government reported this week that the economy grew by a 4.3% annualized pace in the third quarter, far above the historical average near 3%. Other recent reports signaled strength in business spending, consumer confidence, new-home sales and retail sales.
"The job market was carrying plenty of momentum when the hurricanes hit, and is now getting back on track," said Nigel Gault, U.S. economist for Global Insight, a research firm in Waltham, Mass. "The economy has proved remarkably resilient."
Eager to tout good news amid the lowest approval ratings of his administration, President Bush put the best light on the job report and other rosy economic data. "Our economic horizon is as bright as it's been in a long time," Bush said.
"Economic activity appears to be expanding at a reasonably good pace as we head into 2006," Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said Friday.
Job creation was dismal in September and October as employers took a wait-and-see attitude after the hurricanes.
