In November 2019, the United States continued to remain a resilient and stabilized labor market as the jobs report released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the country added 199000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell to 3.7 percent.
This news is certainly a cause for optimism as the overall job growth was in line with expectations for the month and the nation’s unemployment rate was at its lowest point since December of 1969. Much of the additional jobs came from the health care and transportation sectors, which accounted for more than 70% of the overall increase in jobs.
The job growth was a welcome sign of strength as it marked the 109th straight month of positive job growth – a record-setting streak. This could be attributed to the aging population and the steadily-rising longevity amongst the population, leading to an increased demand for healthcare and related services.
The transportation sector also saw significant job growth with over 16,000 jobs added. This sector has been on an upward trajectory due to the increased activity in e-commerce and Americans’ newfound affinity for online and mobile shopping. With an increase in packages and shipments going out, transportation and warehousing jobs had to be created to handle the extra work.
On the flip side, the November jobs report showed some signs of weakness with the manufacturing sector losing nearly 12,000 jobs, which mainly attributed to the ongoing trade war between the United States and China. The ongoing trade disputes have led to some businesses opting to move their production overseas in search of cheaper labor. This has led to significant job losses in the manufacturing sector.
Overall, the jobs report for November provided a mixed bag of news. The majority of the job growth appears to be driven by the healthcare and transportation sectors while the manufacturing sector continued to remain weak mostly due to the ongoing trade issues. Only time will tell how the labor market shapes up in the coming months.
