Will the uptick in jobs influence the Federal Reserve to raise its rate?
It’s the latest key piece of evidence the Fed will consider before making its rate decision later this month, and the optimistic jobs data could influence the central bank to hike the benchmark rate.
Employers added 173,000 jobs in August, dropping the unemployment rate to 5.1%. And although the figure was lower than previous forecast, it comes on the heels strong employment data in June and July.
The jobless rate has also dropped to its lowest point since April 2008.
And that data has at least one Federal Reserve president arguing in favor of putting an end to the record-low rate environment.
“I am not arguing that the economy is perfect, but nor is it on the ropes, requiring zero interest rates to get it back into the ring,” Fed Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker said, according to Bloomberg. “It’s time to align our monetary policy with the significant progress we have made.”
Still, it is still more likely the Fed will hold off on hiking its rate, according to Ashraf Laidi, a global markets analyst.
Employers added 173,000 jobs in August, dropping the unemployment rate to 5.1%. And although the figure was lower than previous forecast, it comes on the heels strong employment data in June and July.
The jobless rate has also dropped to its lowest point since April 2008.
And that data has at least one Federal Reserve president arguing in favor of putting an end to the record-low rate environment.
“I am not arguing that the economy is perfect, but nor is it on the ropes, requiring zero interest rates to get it back into the ring,” Fed Bank of Richmond President Jeffrey Lacker said, according to Bloomberg. “It’s time to align our monetary policy with the significant progress we have made.”
Still, it is still more likely the Fed will hold off on hiking its rate, according to Ashraf Laidi, a global markets analyst.
