Jobs Report Comes in Strong for January, Weak for Last Year

"U.S. job growth accelerated in January, with employers adding 130,000 positions and the unemployment rate edging down to 4.3 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. The gain topped economists' expectations for 75,000 new jobs, while the jobless rate was forecast to hold at 4.4 percent. It marked the strongest monthly increase since December 2024. Hiring was concentrated in health care, which added 82,000 jobs, along with social assistance and construction."

"Job growth was held back partly by a reduction in federal government payrolls, which shed 34,000 positions. Manufacturing employment remained essentially unchanged since last month. The report also noted solid wage growth. Average hourly earnings rose 0.4 percent to $37.17, up 3.7 percent from a year earlier. But the BLS's revisions to previous reports paint a weaker picture of 2025."

U.S. job growth accelerated in January as employers added 130,000 positions and the unemployment rate edged down to 4.3 percent. Hiring was concentrated in health care, which added 82,000 jobs, along with gains in social assistance and construction. Federal government payrolls fell by 34,000, and manufacturing employment was essentially unchanged. Average hourly earnings rose 0.4 percent to $37.17, a 3.7 percent year-over-year increase. Revisions to prior data substantially reduce 2025 job gains, showing only 181,000 jobs added last year versus the previous 584,000 estimate, and payrolls were revised down by 898,000 between April 2024 and March 2025.

Read at The American Conservative