Washington, DC, Nov. 1--The economy lost jobs in October for the second month in a row and the unemployment rate rose to 5.7%, according to the government. The data may heighten expectations the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates at its policy meeting next Wednesday.
According to the Labor Department, the number of workers on nonfarm payrolls fell by 5,000 in October, a slightly worse showing than the 7,000 gain projected by economists.
"It is confirming the job market weakened as we went into the autumn, but maybe not as much as we expected," said Patrick Fearon, economist at A.G. Edwards & Company.
