A closely watched report released by the Labor Department on Wednesday showed employment in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in the month of January.
The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 130,000 jobs in January after rising by a downwardly revised 48,000 jobs in December.
Economists had expected employment to climb by 70,000 jobs compared to the addition of 50,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The stronger than expected job growth largely reflected a sharp increase in employment in the health care and social assistance sector, which surged by 123,500 jobs.
Notable job growth was also seen in the construction sector, while the government and financial activities sectors shed jobs.
“The January jobs report shows modest improvement relative to prior months,” said Mortgage Bankers Association SVP and Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni.
“However, the job gains continue to be focused in just a few sectors, matching the uneven pace of economic growth we are seeing in many data releases,” he added. “Overall, this report provides support for FOMC officials who have voted to keep rates steady for the time being.”
The report also said the unemployment rate edged down to 4.3 percent in January from 4.4 percent in December, while economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged.
The unexpected dip by the unemployment rate came as the household survey measure of employment surged by 528,000 persons, while the labor force jumped by 387,000 persons.
The Labor Department also said average hourly employee earnings climbed by $0.15 or 0.4 percent to $37.17 in January.
Average hourly employee earnings in January were up by 3.7 percent compared to the same month a year ago, unchanged from a revised reading in December.
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