Payrolls for the previous two months were revised a 50,000 higher. Construction added 45,000 jobs, for a total of 263,000 over the year (compared to 338,000 in 2014). The fourth quarter was the best three-month stretch of job creation in 2015. This is actually probably a good number in terms of the market because it showed we’re still cranking despite China, but we’re not so hot that the Fed has to come here in March. The more plausible explanation is that the weak labor market has caused them to give up looking for jobs.
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For all of last year, payrolls climbed by 2.65 million after 3.1 million in 2014 for the best back-to-back years for hiring since 1998-99.
The December jobs report was a blowout. The overall picture of the jobs data was similar to that of the members of the Fed’s policy body, the Federal Open Market Committee, when they decided on December 16 that the economy was resilient enough to handle an increase in the federal funds rate, which should increase borrowing rates for consumers and businesses. Steady hiring and unemployment supports that view. High levels of long-term unemployed workers and part-time workers in recent years are partially why wage growth has been so sluggish. The data suggested an increase of workforce dropouts returning to the labor market, though there were still some signs of weakness.
Hiring in the manufacturing industry, another well-paying sector, also improved last month.
Slumping oil prices and slowing growth in China have cast a pall on the outlook for the global economy.
Chris Low, chief economist at FTN Financial, said, “A huge jobs gain in December was likely boosted by unusually clement weather”.
Railroads lost 300 jobs last month, going from 235,800 in November to 235,500 in December.
Employment rose in several industries, including professional and business services, construction, health care, and food services and bars and pubs, the BLS reported. Half of those were temporary positions, jobs that tend to pay less and thus may have dragged on wage figures. Health care employment rose by 39,000, with most of the increase occurring in ambulatory health care services (+23,000) and hospitals (+12,000). “We have added jobs in December in both the professional and business services”.
Global trade accounts for just about 30 percent of US economic activity, one of the lowest such percentages in the world, according to Patrick O’Keefe, director of economic research at the consulting firm CohnReznick.
Manufacturing added 8,000 jobs last month.
The US created 292,000 new non-farm jobs in December, well above the expected 200,000.
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The Labor Department said Friday that the unemployment rate remained 5 percent for a third straight month. Most analysts estimate that the economy expanded at a modest pace 2.5 percent a year ago. Currently, 7.9 million individuals are still out of work.
