US election hangs on a knife-edge Mitt Romney sharpened his attacks on Barack Obama after the final jobs report before Tuesday's desperately tight election provided further evidence of a slow, but steady economic recovery. With national opinion polls putting the two candidates in a dead heat - but state polls giving Mr Obama a narrow lead in key swing states - Friday's data showed that the rivals will square up with the jobless rate just under the politically important level of 8 per cent. Mr Romney took to the campaign trail with renewed fervour, having deliberately toned down his campaign earlier in the week as Hurricane Sandy devastated large tracts of New York and New Jersey. In a stump speech dubbed his "closing argument," the Republican candidate tried to paint Mr Obama as a failed leader. "If there is anyone who wonders whether better jobs and better pay cheques are things of the past, I have a clear and unequivocal message," he said to a passionate crowd of supporters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With the right leadership, America will come roaring back. Mr Obama pushed back, saying his opponent promised a return to the policies of George W. Bush: "Governor Romney is a very talented salesman - in this campaign, he's tried as hard as he can to repackage these same policies and offer them up as change." With the economy at the centre of a bitter campaign, both candidates had been awaiting the October job figures as the most important public barometer of the strength of the economic recovery. The October report, showed an increase of 171,000 new jobs. Payrolls growth for August and September was also revised upwards by a total of 84,000 jobs, suggesting that the economy had more momentum than previously thought. "This was a good report, not a great report," said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist at PNC. We saw a big upward revision for a second time. I was impressed by the breadth of the job growth and the private sector gain was decent and widespread. The unemployment rate ticked back up to 7.9 per cent - after a large drop to 7.8 per cent last month - as the household survey used to calculate the rate recorded a large increase in the labour force. But Mr Obama's campaign was relieved by the number as it defied signs earlier this year that the economy was entering another summer slowdown. The president's team had feared the jobless rate might rise back above 8 per cent after last month's sharp drop, providing further ammunition for Mr Romney on his most potent campaign issue. Speaking in the crucial swing state of Ohio, Mr Obama trumpeted the jobless figures and a small uptick in manufacturing employment, saying: "Companies hired more workers in October than at any time in the last eight months." Mr Romney, who adopted a markedly more aggressive tone in campaign stops on Friday, called the October jobs report "a sad reminder that the economy is at a virtual standstill." "When I am elected, the economy and the American jobs [market is] stagnant, I won't waste any time complaining about my predecessor," he said, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. From day one, I will go to work to help Americans get back to work. Although Mr Obama appears to have navigated the final potential economic pitfall of the campaign, the number is unlikely to give him much of a boost as the jobs growth and unemployment rate provide more evidence of a slow and uneven recovery. The two candidates are in a virtual tie in national polls, while Mr Obama has so far clung on to a slender but consistent lead in enough battleground states. The strong figures also helped the US dollar index hit its highest level in two months. The jobs numbers are encouraging for the economy, implying that the labour market has been resilient despite slowing business investment and exports. James Marple, senior economist at TD Economics, said: "Ignore the naysayers. The US economy is showing incredible resilience in the face of significant challenges. Additional reporting by Alice Ross in London and Anjli Raval in New York