The US unemployment rate held steady at 4 per cent in December, the US government said today in a report that added to recent signs of a slowing economy.
Non-farm payrolls grew by 105,000 after a sharply downwardly revised gain of 59,000 in November, the US Labour Department said in its closely watched monthly employment report.
December's payroll growth exceeded forecasts by analysts, who had on average predicted a rise of 102,000.
The department said more than half of the overall jobs growth was accounted for by the government sector, while US manufacturers continued to shed jobs.
The figures are the latest in a series of reports depicting a downturn in the once-buoyant US economy. Earlier this week the US Federal Reserve cut key short-term interest rates by an aggressive half percentage point.
Financial markets widely expect the US central bank to cut rates further when policymakers next meet on January 30th.
Reuters