The U.S. labor market cooled substantially in 2024, as employers sharply curtailed hiring and workers faced increasing difficulty finding jobs, although there are no signs of a recession.

Payrolls: 256,000 jobs added in December vs. 153,000 expected, according to economists surveyed by FactSet. Unemployment rate: 4.1%, down from 4.2% in November. Revisions: October

The economy created 256,000 jobs in December, much stronger than what was predicted by Wall Street experts and more than 40,000 from the previous month, the Labor Department in its report released on Friday.

The U.S. economy created a burst of new jobs in December, capping a solid year of employment growth marked by big gains in healthcare and government payrolls.

The surprising 256,000 increase in new jobs in December and a declining unemployment rate is good news, but the latest employment reports masks recent softness in the labor market. The increase in new jobs in December, for example, was centered on just four industries: Health care, government, retail and leisure and hospitality.

The U.S. added 256,000 jobs in December, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday. The number may give the Federal Reserve less incentive to cut interest rates this year.

Employers added 256,000 jobs in December, blowing past economists' expectations and signaling that the job market remains resilient in the face of still-high borrowing rates and stickier-than-expected inflation.

U.S. hiring picked up unexpectedly in December as employers added 256,000 jobs, another sign of the economy's resilience in the face of high interest rates.