US government to skip October jobs report due to shutdown

THE US government said on Wednesday that it would cancel the full release of a report on October’s employment situation, skipping a key indicator that the central bank considers in adjusting interest rates.

This is because some survey data - which was not collected during a lengthy government shutdown - cannot be retroactively gathered, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

The figures in question are about the unemployment rate. But other available data on October’s labour market conditions will instead be released together with November’s numbers, the bureau added.

The delay means that the Federal Reserve will not have access to official October jobs data ahead of its next scheduled policy meeting.

The Fed balances inflation risks with the health of the labour market as it decides whether to raise, cut or keep interest rates unchanged.

A rapidly weakening jobs market could nudge the central bank to slash rates further and give the economy a boost, for example.

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But policymakers could choose to hold off on further rate cuts to tamp down inflation if the employment market was still holding up.

The lack of October government data means that Fed officials will have fewer data points to draw upon for its upcoming decision.

The US government last week concluded its longest shutdown in history - at 43 days - which halted the publication of economic reports on everything from inflation to retail sales. AFP