December jobs report: U.S. added 256,000 non-farm jobs, beating expectations

Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The U.S. economy created 256,000 jobs in December, much stronger than what was predicted by Wall Street experts and more than 40,000 from the previous month, the Labor Department said in its report released on Friday.

The figure blew by the Dow Jones consensus, which forecasted that 155,000 nonfarm jobs were created in December. The Labor Department said the economy had created 212,000 jobs in November.

The robust job numbers may be a disincentive for the Federal Reserve to provide another rate cut at its next meeting.

"Employment trended up in healthcare, government, and social assistance," the Labor Department said in the report. "Retail trade added jobs in December, following a loss in November."

The report said the healthcare sector added 46,000 jobs last month, led by gains of 15,000 services and 14,000 in residential care facilities. Healthcare averaged monthly gains of 57,000 per month in 2024.

Government employment rose by 33,000 while retail trade contributed 43,000 jobs. It lost 29,000 jobs in November. Aiding retail's reemergence was employment in clothing, accessories, shoe, and jewelry retailers, who added 23,000 jobs. General merchandise retailers added 13,000 more.

Building materials and garden equipment and supplies dealers took one of the biggest employment hits, losing 11,000 jobs.

The new jobs figure did not affect the unemployment rate, which remained at 4.1% in December. The Labor Department said the unemployment rate has bounced back and forth from 4.1% to 4.2% for the past seven months, representing about 6.9 million people.

On Wednesday, ADP reported that private employers added a seasonally adjusted 122,000 U.S. jobs to the economy in December, lower than the Dow Jones anticipated 136,000 jobs.