The U.S. economy added 531,000 jobs last month, according to the Labor Department – a number that beat analyst expectations and dropped the unemployment rate to 4.6%, a new pandemic low.

Economists polled by Bloomberg predicted 450,000 new jobs.

“This is the kind of recovery we can get when we are not sidelined by a surge in Covid cases,” Nick Bunker, economic research director at job placement site Indeed, told CNBC. “If this is the sort of job growth we will see in the next several months, we are on a solid path.”

Want a sign that the economy is edging back toward normal? The share of people working from home because of Covid fell to a pandemic low of 11.6% in October. Resumed its decline after stalling out during the Delta wave. pic.twitter.com/Pv4U3LQIcP

— Ben Casselman (@bencasselman) November 5, 2021

The Wall Street Journal reports:

Job growth was also stronger in August and September than previously thought. The economy added 312,000 jobs in September instead of the initially reported 194,000, the Labor Department said Friday. August’s gain also was revised higher to show 483,00 new jobs instead of the previously reported 366,000.

The U.S. still has four million fewer jobs that it did before the pandemic and the labor-force participation rate did not budge in October, a sign that many workers are still reluctant to search for work. But Friday’s job numbers contained good news for almost every sector of the economy. According to The Associated Press:

Last month, hiring was spread across nearly every major industry, with only government employers reporting a job loss. Shipping and warehousing companies posted a gain of 54,000 jobs. Retailers added 35,000. The battered leisure and hospitality sector, which includes, restaurants, bars, hotels and entertainment venues, gained 164,000 jobs.

And employers, who have been competing to fill jobs from a diminished pool of applicants, raised wages at a solid clip: Average hourly pay jumped 4.9% in October compared with a year earlier. Yet even a gain that strong is barely keeping pace with recent surges in consumer price inflation.

The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits fell to a fresh pandemic low last week, another sign the job market is healing after last year’s coronavirus recession. https://t.co/s7mAvI4MI6

— The Boston Globe (@BostonGlobe) November 4, 2021

CNBC adds:

Earlier this week, the Federal Reserve said job growth is strengthening enough for the central bank to begin cutting its monthly bond purchases, a cornerstone of its efforts to boost the economy during the pandemic. However, Chairman Jerome Powell stressed that the picture must continue to improve before the Fed starts raising interest rates.