December’s nonfarm payrolls reading showed much stronger than expected job growth. Nonfarm payrolls soared by 256,00 for the month, up from 212,00 in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. Meanwhile, economists had forecasted job growth to rise by 155,000 jobs in December, according to Dow Jones.
The unemployment rate inched lower to 4.1%, one-tenth of a point below expectations.
Fed meeting minutes from December, released on Wednesday, showed that officials were worried about inflation and the impact of President-elect Donald Trump’s policies, and indicated that they would be moving more slowly on interest rate cuts in 2025.
