Author: Avie Schneider / Source: NPR.org
Updated at 9:16 a.m. ET
The markets are a mess but companies are still hiring — a lot.
The economy ended the year by adding a much-stronger-than-expected 312,000 jobs in December — the biggest gain in 10 months, the Labor Department said Friday.
Meanwhile, the unemployment rate jumped to 3.9 percent — the highest rate since August — as more people felt confident enough to quit their jobs and look for new ones.
Private analysts had projected jobs would grow by about 180,000 and that unemployment would stay at 3.7 percent.
Wage growth also picked up. Average hourly earnings grew 3.2 percent over the past 12 months — topping the 3.1 percent increase in November. Average earnings climbed to $27.48 an hour.
Several sectors saw a pickup in hiring. Manufacturing jobs grew by 32,000 last month, construction climbed 38,000, retail was up nearly 24,000, health care rose nearly 58,000, and leisure and hospitality jumped 55,000.
In a signal of even more strength, 58,000 more jobs overall were added in the prior two months than previously reported. That boosted job gains to an average 254,000 per month over the last three months.
The strong jobs numbers contrast with a plunging stock market and concerns that the U.S. economy will be hurt by weakness in other countries.
Month-to-month change in nonfarm payrolls
Notes: All values are seasonally adjusted. In the bar…
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