US employers added 165,000 jobs last month, a figure that comfortably beat forecasts.

The unemployment rate slipped to 4.1% in the same period.

Economists had anticipated hiring of just 65,000 new jobs.

The report landed three days after midterm elections in which voters dealt a stunning defeat to President Donald Trump and his Republican Party.

Frustrated with the state of the economy – and especially the high cost of living – Americans handed full control of Congress to the Democrats.

The Labor Department also revised its figures upward, adding a combined 84,000 jobs to the August and September totals.

The jobless rate fell as 421,000 people entered the labor force.

Average hourly wages rose 0.4% in October from September, the biggest month-over-month gain since January.

"This was a blowout jobs report,'' said Angelo Kourkafas, senior global strategist at Edward Jones.…