Graph courtesy of Marketwatch.com/Labor Department
Unemployment drops but wages still stagnant
The September jobs report released Friday was greeted with a great deal of applause, boasting the lowest unemployment rate since 2008 at 5.9 percent. About 248,000 new jobs were also added to payrolls, a strong figure in comparison to the past year.
In response to the rosy report, stocks continued to rally, but after realization set in that not all data was glowing, the dollar's index dropped 1.1 percent Monday. Although the overall unemployment rate continues to drop, the percentage of Americans employed in the labor market has also dropped to 62.7 percent - the lowest rate since 1978.
While the data released in the jobs report was mostly positive - job gains were also marked for demographics including Latinos and African-Americans - a big concern remains stagnant wage growth.
Fed officials will want to see wage growth exceeding the roughly 2 percent inflation increase as a signal that the economy can withstand interest rate increases. All eyes and ears will be on the Fed in the coming months to determine when we can expect rates to move past this historic bottom-dwelling era.
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