The U.S. added a whopping 336,000 jobs in September and the unemployment rate stayed even at 3.8 percent, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.

The September jobs report far exceeded expectations after several months of slowing employment gains.

Economists projected the U.S. to have added 170,000 jobs last month, according to consensus estimates, and knock the jobless rate down to 3.7 percent. The U.S instead added nearly twice that number without making a dent in the unemployment rate.

The US also added 119,000 more jobs than previously reported in July and August, according to revisions released by the Labor Department on Friday.

The surprisingly strong September jobs report followed several months of shrinking job gains, rising unemployment and other signs of an economic slowdown.

While the September jobs surge may be good news for Americans wary of a recession, it poses a new challenge for the Federal Reserve as it plots the next steps in its battle against inflation.

[UPDATE] Links to the actual report in case you want to read it:

• HTML: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm
• PDF: https://www.bls.gov/news.release/pdf/empsit.pdf