130,000 jobs were created in the United States in January 2025, revised downward
In January, 130,000 jobs were created in the United States, about double analysts' expectations, but annual forecasts sharply reduced the monthly increase for 2025 by almost 70%.
"The increase in the number of people employed in January is mainly due to the unusually mild weather in the first half of the month and a one-time increase in the number of jobs in the healthcare sector," says a note from Pantheon Macroeconomics.
According to the Ministry of Labor, wage employment in 2025 was revised downward to 15,000 per month from 49,000 per month reported in January. Taking into account the annual revisions of the indicators, the total employment growth for 2025 was reduced to 181,000 from the previous 584,000.
The first year of US President Donald Trump's return to office was marked by massive cuts in the federal government, an aggressive campaign to expel illegal immigrants, and trade wars that complicated his job. so that companies can make long-term hiring and investment plans.
Nevertheless, increased labor productivity, along with significant consumer spending, allowed the economy to continue growing amid a weakening labor market.
The number of jobs in December and November was revised downwards by 17,000, and in December - by 2,000 and amounted to 48,000.
Employment in the federal government decreased by 34,000 in January and stands at 327,000, or 10.9%, since peaking in October 2024.
5,000 jobs were created in the manufacturing industry in January after several months of decline. 82,000 jobs were created in the healthcare sector, and 42,000 in the social assistance sector. 33,000 new jobs were created in construction during the month. Oil and gas production has cut 1,200 jobs.
The average hourly wage in January increased by 3.7% compared to the previous year.
Unemployment dropped to 4.3% in January from 4.4% in the previous month.
The CME's FedWatch tool released data on the chances of the Federal Reserve cutting the rate by a quarter percentage point at its March meeting to 5.9% after Wednesday's report, down from 20% on Tuesday.