U.S. Job Growth Misses Estimates In January But Unemployment Rate Unexpectedly Dips

(RTTNews) - While the Labor Department released a report on Friday showing employment in the U.S. increased by less than expected in the month of January, the report also showed the unemployment rate unexpectedly edged slightly lower.

The closely watched report said non-farm payroll employment rose by 143,000 jobs in January compared to economist estimates for an increase of about 170,000 jobs.

The Labor Department said job growth in the healthcare, retail and social assistance sectors was partly offset by a decrease in employment in the mining, quarrying and oil and gas extraction industry.

Meanwhile, employment in December and November surged by upwardly revised 307,000 jobs and 261,000 jobs, respectively, reflecting a net upward revision of 100,000 jobs.

The report also said the unemployment rate dipped to 4.0 percent in January from 4.1 percent in December. The unemployment rate was expected to remain unchanged.

The modest decrease by the unemployment rate came as the household survey measure of employment jumped by 234,000 persons, outpacing a 91,000-person increase in the size of the labor force.

"An unemployment rate at 4% is considered very low, giving the Fed reason to keep fed funds unchanged in the near term," said Jeffrey Roach, Chief Economist for LPL Financial.

The Labor Department also said average hourly employee earnings climbed $0.17 or 0.5 percent to $35.87 in January.

Average hourly employee earnings were up by 4.1 percent year-over-year in January, unchanged from an upwardly revised reading for December.