U.S. adds 216,000 jobs in December, much better than expected

Jan. 5, 2024, 8:49 AM EST / Source: CNBC

By Jeff Cox, CNBC

The U.S. labor market closed out 2023 in strong shape as the pace of hiring was even more powerful than expected, the Labor Department reported Friday.

December’s jobs report showed employers added 216,000 jobs for the month while the unemployment rate held at 3.7%. Payroll growth showed a sizeable gain from November’s downwardly revised 173,000.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for payrolls to increase 170,000 and the unemployment rate to nudge higher to 3.8%.

Markets reacted negatively to the report, with stock market futures sliding and Treasury yields sharply higher.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Jeff Cox, CNBC

Jeff Cox is a finance editor with CNBC.com where he covers all aspects of the markets and monitors coverage of the financial markets and Wall Street. His stories are routinely among the most-read items on the site each day as he interviews some of the smartest and most well-respected analysts and advisors in the financial world.

Over the course of a journalism career that began in 1987, Cox has covered everything from the collapse of the financial system to presidential politics to local government battles in his native Pennsylvania.

The U.S. added 216,000 jobs in December, much better than expected

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