Political | Process

The unemployment rate dropped by 0.4 percentage points to 4.2%, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

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• The economy continues to claw its way out of a pandemic-induced slump, but it is still millions of jobs short of its pre-pandemic level. Before COVID-19 hit, the unemployment rate was at an ultra-low 3.5%.

• The gradual rebound of the economy ran into a speed bump over the summer when the delta variant of COVID-19 emerged and sent hospitalizations and deaths spiking.

• The omicron variant of the virus was recently discovered, which the World Health Organization quickly branded a “variant of concern.”

• The stock market responded to the omicron variant with its worst single-day decline of 2021, although there has not yet been any evidence that the new strain is more dangerous than previous iterations of COVID-19.

• Still, the country is suffering from rising prices, with inflation clocking in at 6.2% for the year ending in October, nearly 0.5% above predictions and the highest level in three decades .

• There are also concerns with worker shortages as some businesses struggle to find workers. The price pressures have led Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell to say that the central bank will move more quickly toward raising its interest rate target.

SOURCE: WASHINGTONEXAMINER