U.S. jobs growth slows well below forecasts
US jobs growth fell well below forecasts in December as rising COVID-19 infections disrupted economic activity, according to official data released today.
The figure in the US Bureau of Labor Statistics report showed that the US economy added 199,000 jobs in December, after economists polled by Reuters had anticiapted a rise of 400,000.
Unemployment levels dropped to their lowest level in the pandemic however, falling from 4.2% in November to 3.9%, below economists’ forecast of 4.1%.
Data showed that the leisure and hospitality industry added 2.6 million jobs over the course of the year in 2021 as the economy reopened from lockdowns. However, employment in the industry is still down by 1.2m jobs, compared to February 2020.
Professional and business services firms added 43,000 jobs, manufacturing added 26,000 jobs, construction employment rose by 22,000, while transportation and warehousing increased by 19,000.
Daniel Zhao, Senior Economist at Glassdoor, said in a tweet: “Today’s December jobs report ends 2021 on a sour note. Payroll gains slowed even more to 199,000 after a sluggish November, well below expectations. Unemployment dropped to 3.9 percent.
“The report also doesn’t fully incorporate Omicron which could reverse job gains in Jan.