September Jobs Report May Show Cooling Labor Market as Fed Fights Inflation

All eyes will be on the September jobs report when it is released Friday morning as investors look for clues about the labor market’s health.

Economists expect hiring increased by 170,000 last month and the unemployment rate ticked down to 3.7%, signaling some cooling in the red-hot labor market.

Slower job growth and moderating wage gains could be welcome news for the Federal Reserve as it tries to tame inflation.

The labor market remains tight with 1.5 jobs per unemployed American, but private sector job growth fell to the slowest pace since early 2021.

The September jobs report is expected to show not-too-hot, not-too-cold job gains, but uncertainty about inflation persists.