US economy adds 216,000 jobs in December, far more than expected

Published

1 year ago

January 10, 2024

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US employers added 216,000 jobs in December, a surprisingly strong increase that fuels doubt as to when the Federal Reserve will begin cutting rates this year.

Last month’s payroll growth came in over November’s higher-than-expected 199,000 advance — and well ahead of the 170,000 economists expected, according to Refinitiv data.

The figure marks an average monthly payroll gain of 232,000 over the previous 12 months — a strong figure considering the economy was gripped with stubbornly high inflation and the highest borrowing rate Americans have seen in 22 years.

It reinforces the notion that the Feds not going to be in a rush to cut rates. former New York Fed President William Dudley told Bloomberg on Friday.

Dudley added that the economys doing pretty well and that May is more likely for the Fed to start cutting.

“Theyll need to see some signs that the economy is slowing,” Dudley said. “The wage trend for now is something that is likely concerning to policymakers.”

The Labor Department said employment continued to trend up in government, which saw the biggest gain of 52,000 in December — followed by health care, social assistance, and construction, the Labor Department said on Friday.

Only two industries lost jobs: transportation and warehousing, which dipped 23,000 last month.

The Labor Department’s data revised November’s payroll gains down by 26,000, while October’s figure was revised down by 45,000.

The Fed has lifted the benchmark federal funds rate to a 22-year high, between 5.25% and 5.5%, in hopes of tamping down inflation to its highly-coveted 2% target.

But at the minutes of its December meeting released Wednesday, Federal Reserve officials indicated that interest rates were at or near their peak when they voted to leave the rate unchanged last month but offered few clues as to when they might implement cuts.

Almost all participants indicated that a lower target range for the federal funds rate would be appropriate by the end of 2024, said the minutes, with a number of participants highlighting increased uncertainty about how long strict monetary policy would need to be maintained.

Data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday also noted that the unemployment rate stayed the same, at 3.7%, a tick lower than the 3.8% rate Refinitiv economists also predicted.

Average hourly earnings — a key measure of inflation — increased 15 cents, or 0.4% for the month, to $34.27. Over the past 12 months, hourly earnings are up 4.1%.

The wage advance comes just after New York’s minimum-wage pay bump took effect, lifting the minimum wage in New York City, Long Island, and Westchester County $1, from $15 to $16.

In the remainder of New York State — which is one of 22 states getting minimum wage hikes in the new year — the new minimum wage is $15, up from $14.20.

A separate report released by the Labor Department on Tuesday showed that job openings unexpectedly slowed to 8.7 million at the end of November, the lowest level since March 2021.

The figure marks a decrease from the downward revised 9.3 million openings reported the previous month, a signal of shaky confidence in the job market.

Though the dip came out of the blue for economists, it backs up data recently released by American employment website Indeed, which found that as of Dec. 29, 2023, open positions on the site declined more than 15% from a year earlier.

Following the release of the latest Consumer Price Index in November — which tracks changes in the costs of everyday goods and services and showed that US inflation rose 3.1% — Fed chair Jerome Powell said the historic tightening of monetary policy is likely over.

Powell dovetailed the report with projections from all 19 policymakers that showed near unanimity that borrowing costs would fall in 2024 — as many as three times.

While Fed policymakers did not want to take another rate hike off the table, it is no longer the central banks base case, he said in remarks made in a press conference following the end of the central banks final policy meeting of 2023.

December’s CPI report is set to be released on Jan. 11.

Central bankers will decide on whether or not to keep interest rates steady, between 5.25% and 5.5%, following their next two-day meeting, which will conclude on Jan. 31.

Sports

Panthers-Hurricanes Game 5 preview: Can Carolina force another game?

Published

3 hours ago

May 28, 2025

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Panthers-Hurricanes Game 5 preview: Can Carolina force another game?

All signs pointed to the Florida Panthers finishing off the Carolina Hurricanes in Game 4, but the Canes kept the series rolling with a 3-0 win on Monday.

Will the Panthers finish the story in Game 5? Or will the Hurricanes send the festivities back to South Florida again?

Here are matchup notes heading into Wednesday’s Game 5 from ESPN Research, as well as betting intel from ESPN BET:

More on Game 4: Recap | Grades

Matchup notes

Florida Panthers at Carolina Hurricanes
Game 5 | 8 p.m. ET | TNT

The Panthers’ odds to win the series are now -1600, adjusted from -5000 heading into Game 4. The Hurricanes’ odds have shifted to +750 (adjusted from +1500) after their win. The Panthers’ odds to win the Cup are now +105 (previously -110), while the Canes’ are now +1800. Sergei Bobrovsky is the leading Conn Smythe candidate in this series at +200, followed by Aleksander Barkov (+800).

Game 4 was the Canes’ first win in the round since Game 7 of the 2006 Eastern Conference finals against the Buffalo Sabres, snapping a 15-game conference finals losing streak. It was the longest losing streak in NHL playoff history for a team in the round preceding the Stanley Cup Final. The Hurricanes are now 4-4 all-time in Game 4s when trailing 3-0 in a best-of-seven series.

Frederik Andersen made 20 saves for his fifth career playoff shutout, his second with the Hurricanes. He joins Cam Ward (four), Kevin Weekes (two) and Petr Mrazek (two) as goaltenders with multiple playoff shutouts in Whalers/Hurricanes Stanley Cup playoffs history.

Carolina’s Logan Stankoven scored playoff goal No. 5 in the second period. He joins Erik Cole (six in 2002) and Warren Foegele (five in 2019) as the only rookies in Whalers/Hurricanes history to score at least five goals in a single Stanley Cup playoffs year.

Sebastian Aho scored an empty-net goal in the third period, his 32nd career playoff tally. That extends his own franchise record for career goals in the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The Panthers were shut out for the second time this postseason; both games were at home — the other instance was Game 6 of the second-round series against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Florida went 0-4 on the power play in Game 4, and the team is now 0-8 with the man advantage in the last two games of this series after going 4-for-5 in Games 1 and 2.

Though he hasn’t scored a goal in the past two games, Sam Bennett has a team-leading nine this postseason. That is two shy of the franchise record in a single playoff year, currently held by Matthew Tkachuk (2023) and Carter Verhaeghe (2024).

Scoring leaders

GP: 16 | G: 6 | A: 9

GP: 14 | G: 5 | A: 9

UK

Liverpool fan says his baby was flung 15ft in his pram and his partner run over during trophy parade

Published

3 hours ago

May 28, 2025

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Liverpool fan says his baby was flung 15ft in his pram and his partner run over during trophy parade

A father has told Sky News how his partner was driven over, and his baby son was flung 15ft in his pram, after they were hit by a vehicle during the Liverpool parade collision.

Daniel Everson, 36, had been with Sheree Aldridge and their five-month-old baby, Teddy, at Liverpool FC’s victory parade on Monday.

“The best day of my life turned into worst”, said Daniel, a lifelong fan of ‘The Reds’.

Daniel described the moment the car came towards him and his family.

“I tried to hold on to the front of the car and try and stop it, push it, do whatever I could [to stop it] from hitting my partner and my baby.

“Me and my partner were flat on the roof, on the bonnet… we were just both trying to hold on for dear life with Ted next to us.

“And my partner went under the wheels of the car, of the front of the car, and it rolled over her leg, and I just bounced off to the side, but my boy and his pram got bounced totally in the opposite direction – about 15ft down the road.

“As soon as that happened, I just started screaming for my partner, and I found her and I asked where Teddy was, and she didn’t know… and I found him and he was okay, thank God.

“He was in the road, in his pram, on his back, and I grabbed him. I chucked the pushchair to the side and I ran up to some paramedics with him.”

Daniel, from Telford, said he felt like he was in “hell” as he rushed back to find Sheree.

“I had to carry her up the road with four police officers holding her while she was screaming and crying. At that point, I didn’t know what was wrong with her, but I could see the injuries to her leg,” he explained.

Sheree, 36, is recovering at Aintree University Hospital after suffering muscle tissue damage. Daniel has been allowed to return home with Teddy after he was assessed at Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

“I feel a lot of emotions right now. Upset, angry, traumatised. A lot of unanswered questions that need to be answered.

“To me, it just wasn’t handled properly – the situation with the car getting that far into the crowd, in my opinion, he should not have got anywhere near us.”

Merseyside Police have now been given more time to question a 53-year-old arrested after a car struck a crowd at Liverpool FC’s victory parade on Monday.

The suspect, who police have described as a white British man from the local area, is being held on suspicion of attempted murder, dangerous driving, and drug driving.

Police have said the extra time they have been given to question the suspect runs into Thursday.

Politics

Pakistan announces Bitcoin strategic reserve

Published

3 hours ago

May 28, 2025

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Pakistan announces Bitcoin strategic reserve

Bilal Bin Saqib, head of Pakistan’s crypto council, announced on May 28 that the country is moving to establish a strategic Bitcoin reserve.

Speaking at the Bitcoin 2025 conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, Saqib said the government of Pakistan followed the United States’ lead in establishing a Bitcoin strategic reserve and is embracing pro-crypto regulatory policies. The government official told the audience:

“Today is a very historic day. Today, I announce the Pakistani government is setting up its own government-led Bitcoin Strategic Reserve, and we want to thank the United States of America again because we were inspired by them.”

The announcement represents a significant departure from the government of Pakistan’s previous stance on cryptocurrencies, holding that crypto would never be legal in the country.

Pakistan’s shift reflects the broader trend of nation-states adopting pro-crypto policies following the regulatory shift in Washington, DC under the President Donald Trump administration.