‘WOW!’ Fox Business Panel Shocked by September Jobs Number

The September jobs report is in from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the news was surprising for the expert panel on Fox Business.

Fox Business co-host Cheryl Casone was on hand for the news as part of host Maria Bartiromo’s panel, and the numbers of the “blockbuster” report left her gobsmacked:

I want to start with a very hot number. Nonfarm payrolls, 336,000. [Off-screen “WOW!”] That is a big jump. That is bigger than the range that I was even looking at. The unemployment rate now at 3.8 percent. But again, wow, 336,000, and the estimate again, remind you all, 170,000 and the rate went up to 3.8 percent from 3.7 percent.

Casone also noted the labor force participation rate (62.8 percent), the underemployment rate (7 percent), and average hourly earnings (0.2 percent, month over month). The July private sector rate was revised, jumping from 157,000 to 236,000, and August was revised from 187,000 to 227,000, up 40,000. The 3.8 percent unemployment rate for September was the same in August, though economists were predicting a slight decrease (3.7 percent).

But the amount of new jobs predicted had been much lower as Casone reported (170,000; 160,000 in the private sector), so this was a better than expected number and continues a trend of jobs numbers exceeding expectations.

On Fox News, Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy also covered the “blowout” numbers:

Watch the videos above via Fox Business and Fox News.