Washington, DC, Oct. 3--Employers expanded their payrolls for the first time in eight months as the jobless rate held steady in September.
Nonfarm business payrolls rose by 57,000 last month, ending a seven-month streak in which nearly 500,000 jobs were cut, the Labor Department reported Friday. The unemployment rate came in at 6.1%, the same as August's rate.
Economists had expected payrolls to shrink by 25,000 and the unemployment to tick higher to 6.2%, according to a survey by Dow Jones Newswires and CNBC.
Employers added jobs in all but a few major sectors. The manufacturing industry cut 29,000 jobs, the smallest number in more than a year. The leisure and hospitality industry cut 3,000 jobs, the same as in August. The government cut 15,000 jobs, marking the seventh consecutive month of decline.
But the service-producing industry added 74,000 jobs, the largest increase since January. The businesses-services industry added 66,000 jobs, the largest increase in more than a year. The retail-trade industry added 10,000 jobs, also the biggest increase in more than a year. The construction industry added 14,000 jobs, down from a 19,000 gain in August.
