"This (jobless) number will continue to support the notion that the economy is growing"
- Paul Nolte, Kingsview Asset Management
U.S. unemployment fell below the 6% threshold for the first time since the Great Recession, adding to further evidence the job market has been enjoying the steadiest recovery in U.S. history. The jobless rate declined from 6.1% in August to 5.9%, the lowest level since July 2008, Labor Department said. This is due to the fact that hiring returned to a strong pace, as employers added 248,000 jobs in September, rebounding from a weak August. Payrolls have risen an average 227,000 a month this year, putting 2014 on track to be the strongest year of job growth since the late 1990s. The unemployment rate is gradually moving to the 5.2%-5.5% range the Federal Reserve projects to see in the long term. Financial markets cheered the news, with the U.S. Dollar being pushed higher as expectations rose that interest rates would be lifted sooner than previously expected. EUR/USD weakened to 1.2540 immediately after the data release and continued to stay around the low 1.25 range throughout Friday trading session.
On top of that, U.S. trade gap shrank in August as exports rose, an evidence of stronger overseas demand for U.S.-made goods that could further boost economic growth in the just-ended July-September quarter. The trade deficit narrowed 0.5% to a seasonally adjusted $40.11 billion in August from the previous month's revised deficit of $40.32 billion.
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