US jobless rate falls to lowest level since July

Jobs growth in the US was stronger than expected last month, in part boosted as striking workers in Hollywood and the car industry returned to work.

Employers added 199,000 jobs in November, the Labor Department said.

That helped to push down the jobless rate to 3.7% - the lowest level since July.

The monthly report is being closely watched as the US central bank tries to cool the economy to reduce inflation, the rate at which prices rise.

The Federal Reserve has raised interest rates to the highest level in more than two decades in an attempt to slow price rises, and investors are increasingly betting that rates have peaked for now and may even start to fall next year.

But the latest figures, while welcome news for jobseekers, may confound those hopes.

As well as stronger-than-expected job gains, the report showed average hourly pay ticking up 0.4% from October.

Average hourly earnings have climbed 4% from November 2022 - a rate that analysts said was too fast for the Fed to declare its job is done.

The strength of the US economy over the past year has defied expectations and persistently glum economic sentiment.