US Jobs Report, Fed Meeting and Election on TapUSJobsReport,FedMeetingandElectiononTap

US data showed that inflation was tame and economic growth decelerated, bolstering expectations for another rate cut less than a week before the Federal Reserve’s penultimate meeting of the year. While the economy has remained resilient amid weakness abroad, its pace of growth eased in the third quarter to an annualized rate of 2.8% from 3% in the previous quarter, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. The core personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index, which the Fed uses to gauge inflation, held at 2.7% year-over-year in September, data released on Thursday revealed. When including volatile food and energy costs, PCE inflation cooled to 2.1% from 2.3%. The Labor Department will publish its October jobs report on Friday, and forecasts suggest there were just 110,000 new jobs added during the month, possibly reflecting the impact of Hurricanes Helene and Milton, as well as a strike at Boeing. According to interest rate futures, investors expect the Fed to lower rates by a quarter-point when its policy meeting concludes on Thursday—one day later than usual due to the US presidential election.

No matter which candidate wins, the global outlook will likely remain uncertain amid headwinds to growth and intensifying competition among major economies. A new episode of PGIM’s The Outthinking Investor podcast examines how economic policies, including taxes, tariffs, and spending plans, will influence the evolving investment outlook. This episode features Glenn Hubbard and Jason Furman, former Chairs of the Council of Economic Advisers under Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.