Record Seasonal Adjustment Tones Down Blowout US Jobs Report
- BLS adjusts numbers to make them comparable month to month
- Strength in retail, construction hiring ‘unlikely to persist’
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US job growth blew past every estimate in September. But a good chunk of the surge may reflect how the government adjusts the numbers.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics, which compiles the employment report, uses a model to fine-tune the raw change in payrolls to better account for seasonal factors, like summertime fluctuations when teachers are off, construction jobs are booming and restaurants hire additional staff. That way, the numbers are more easily comparable month to month.