The United States added 467,000 jobs in January, according to official figures released this Friday, February 4, much better than expected, despite the new wave of COVID-19 infections caused by the omicron variant.
The Labor Department report, which also showed the jobless rate rising slightly to 4% in January, has been taken positively as many analysts expected labor hiring to be weak or negative in the first month. of 2022.
The data further reinforces the description made last week by the chairman of the Federal Reserve (fed), Jerome Powellof the labor market as “strong” and validate the intention of the central bank to raise interest rates in March to combat the highest inflation in almost 40 years.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department report showed average hourly earnings rose 0.7% in January and 5.7% from a year earlier, further fueling concerns about persistent inflation. The average work week decreased.
Bars and restaurants were the sectors that increased the number of jobs with 151,000 new jobs. Professional and business services added 86,000 jobs and retail another 61,000.
The impact of omicron in the labor market in January was substantial. There were 3.6 million employed Americans who were not working due to illness, more than double the number in December. Meanwhile, 6 million people were unable to work in the month because their employer closed or lost business due to the pandemic, roughly double the number in December.
The economy added 19.1 million jobs since the height of the COVID-19 crisis in April 2020, but is still 2.9 million jobs short, according to the data.
The government also revised data for 2021, saying employment that year was 217,000 higher than initially reported.
With information from AFP and Bloomberg.
Source: Larepublica
Kingston is an accomplished author and journalist, known for his in-depth and engaging writing on sports. He currently works as a writer at 247 News Agency, where he has established himself as a respected voice in the sports industry.
