United States: Labor market continues to tighten in December
Total non-farm payrolls increased by 199,000 in December, following November’s 249,000 increase in payrolls. Employment gains occurred in professional and business services, and food services.
The unemployment rate ticked down to 3.9% in December from 4.2% in November, and the labor force participation rate was stable at November’s 61.9% in December. Hourly earnings rose 0.6% month-on-month in December (November: +0.4% mom), while annual wage growth dipped to 4.7% from 5.1% in November.