US payroll revisions reassure investors

US non-farm payrolls for October have come in below expectations, but revisions to previous figures have helped reassure markets as investors wait for further developments on Europe.

The US added 80,000 jobs in October, according to figures released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The unemployment rate fell from 9.1% to 9%. Consensus forecasts were for a rise of 95,000, but September figures were revised up sharply from a 103,000 gain to a rise of 158,000, while August numbers were also revised up from 57,000 to 104,000. The announcement sent the FTSE up 1% before the index gave up most of those gains amid continued uncertainty over the future of the Greek government. Investors are now awaiting forthcoming announcements from the EU summit in Cannes. Having g...