October Jobs Report Better Than Expected

Washington, DC, Nov. 2, 2012 -- The U.S. economy gained 171,000 jobs in October, according to the Labor Department, although the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9%.

The government also revised its jobs estimates higher for the previous two months.

Economists expected a 120,000 increase in jobs, with an unemployment rate of 7.9%.

Employment gains for September and August were revised up by a combined 84,000.