The U.S. economy created 517,000 new jobs in January, up from an upwardly revised 260,000 in December, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). This is also higher than economists’ expectations of 185,000.
The unemployment rate dipped to 3.4 percent, down from 3.5 percent and below the market estimate of 3.6 percent.
Average hourly earnings eased to 4.4 percent year-over-year, down from 4.9 percent in December. This also beat market forecasts of 4.3 percent. On a month-over-month basis, average hourly earnings rose 0.3 percent, down from 0.4 percent. Average weekly hours rose to 34.7.
The labor force participation rate also edged up to 62.4 percent, up from 62.3 percent.
The leisure and hospitality sector led the way, with 128,000 new jobs in January. This was followed by professional and business services (82,000), government (74,000), health care (58,000), and retail (30,000). The construction industry added 25,000 jobs and the transportation and warehousing sector created 23,000 positions. Employment in social assistance increased by 21,000. Payrolls were little changed in mining, wholesale trade, information, and financial activities….