US jobless rate hits fresh low

The number of people out of work in the United States has fallen to a six-year low.

The unemployment rate dropped to 5.9 percent last month with some 248,000 jobs added; a stronger labour market than many analysts expected.

The pace of hiring in America’s economy has decidedly stepped up this year. The government also said 69,000 more jobs had been added to payrolls in July and August than previously estimated.

The gain in payrolls over the last six months is now at its highest level since before the 2007 recession.

It is the most significant gauge of the economy’s health ahead of congressional elections on Nov. 4, and
it has heighten hopes the Federal Reserve will raise interests rates in mid-2015.

Many investors are now betting the Fed will wait until July to raise its benchmark rate, which has been near zero since 2008.

But several officials at the U.S. central bank have expressed concern in recent weeks that inflation remains too low, a sign that a significant amount of slack remains in the economy.