The United States unemployment rate came in at 4.1% for October 2026, below the 4.2% that markets had forecast. The figure was also lower than the previous period’s reading of 4.2%, when the rate stood at the same level as the forecast. The data was released at 13:30 GMT on 6 November.
What the figure measures
The unemployment rate is the share of the labour force that is jobless and actively looking for work, and a lower reading means a smaller share of people are without jobs. A reading that comes in below forecast suggests the labour market was somewhat stronger than economists had expected for the month. The comparison with the previous period is a separate matter: the rate moved down by a tenth of a percentage point from the earlier reading.
The rate for the September 2026 reading stood at 4.2%, so the October figure marks a return to a slightly lower level. Markets had expected the rate to hold where it was, and the outcome was a small improvement on that expectation.
Related: France Inflation Rate Rises to 3.4% in October
Data: FRED — St. Louis Fed
