US unemployment rate in October fell to 4.6 percent, down from 4.8 percent in September.

The economy added 531,000 jobs in October, blowing past economists’ predictions of 450,000, and the unemployment rate fell to 4.6 percent from 4.8 percent.

Friday’s release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics followed a disappointing September report in which a mere 194,000 jobs were added, compared to the half million expected by economists.

A robust private-sector jobs report from payroll processor ADP showed October job growth of 571,000 — a better-than-anticipated figure, driven by the addition of 185,000 leisure and hospitality jobs.

One aspect of the post-Covid job market that already is clear: The pandemic fundamentally altered the contours of the American workforce, a finding that has implications for lagging labor force participation, particularly among women.