U.S. Added 223,000 Jobs In December As Unemployment Rate Ticks Down To 3.5%

Ted Johnson
·1 min read

The U.S. economy added 223,000 jobs in December, slower than previous months but still robust, while the unemployment rate edged lower to 3.5%.

The figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics were generally in line with expectations, as economists look for signs that the Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate hikes, meant to curb inflation, will slow the broader economy and the job market.

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The BLS said that there were significant gains in construction, leisure and hospitality, health care and social assistance.

The big question is whether the economy can avoid recession as the Federal Reserve raises rates.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics, wrote on Twitter, “The job market is cooling, but at this pace it won’t be until this time next year that there will be enough slack that wage growth is the Fed’s liking. It is near 5% now but needs to be 3.5%. This slow adjustment feels like a feature and not a bug. Hopefully the Fed agrees.”

The end of the year saw cutbacks or plans to layoff at a number of media companies. But the media picture was mixed overall. During the month, the number of motion picture and sound recording jobs fell by 13,000 to 440,300, while broadcasting jobs rose slightly, by 5,000, to 235,100. Publishing jobs dropped by 2,800 to 843,600.

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