US Economy Generated 211,000 Jobs in the Month of November

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the US economy generated 211,000 jobs in the month of November. The Bureau of Labor Statistics also reported that unemployment rate held steady at 5 percent, a number unchanged from the month of October.

Overall the report paints an economy that is steady and growing. Employers have now added over 200,000 jobs every month in 2015. The robust hiring indicates that consumer spending is powering the economy.

Wall Street was also pleased with the labor report. Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 250 points and the S&P 500 gained more than a percent, back into the positive for the year after closing lower year-to-date at the closing bell on Thursday. NASDAQ Composite also saw an increase, also gaining over one percent.

The closely watched employment report also came a day after Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen struck an upbeat note on the economy when she testified before lawmakers, describing how it had largely met the criteria the U.S. central bank has set for the Fed’s first rate hike since June 2006. Yellen said on Thursday that, “The economy has come a long way toward (the Fed’s) objectives of maximum employment and price stability,” Yellen said. Raising rates “will be a testament, also, to how far the economy has come in recovering from the effects of the financial crisis and the Great Recession. In that sense, it is a day that I expect we all are looking forward to.”

The robust job report exceeded expectations and may be the final key the Federal Reserve needed to hike interest rate later this month when they reconvene before the holiday season on December 15-16.