By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. job growth accelerated in September, but the unemployment rate rose to 4.4% and the economy shed jobs in the prior month, suggesting labor market conditions remained sluggish.

Nonfarm payrolls increased by 119,000 jobs after a downwardly revised 4,000 drop in August, the Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said on Thursday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast 50,000 jobs would be added after a previously reported 22,000 gain in August.

The report was initially due on October 3, but was delayed by the 43-day shutdown of the government. The longest shutdown in history has forced the BLS to cancel the release of October’s report as no data was collected for the household survey to calculate the unemployment rate for that month.

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