The Globe and Mail reports in its Saturday edition that the Federal Reserve officials have been monitoring the job market, concerned it might be struggling due to high interest rates. A New York Times dispatch to The Globe reports that the September employment report eases those concerns. Companies hired at a fast pace, the unemployment rate decreased and there was strong wage growth last month. This indicates that the economy is holding up well despite the high borrowing costs. The report has reversed recent signs of a slowdown in the labour market, thereby likely negating the argument for a substantial rate cut at the Fed's upcoming meeting in early November. Fed policy-makers lowered interest rates by half a point in September. Officials were reacting to slowing inflation and a recent cooling in the labour market. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, however, has been clear that future rate cuts are likely to be more measured if the economy performs as expected. In September, the Fed predicted a total half-point cut in borrowing costs by the end of the year, with unemployment expected to tick up to 4.4 per cent. Friday's jobs data suggested that instead of gradually slowing, the job market may in fact be stabilizing already.