Financial News: U.S. Employment Jumps By 130,000 Jobs In January,

U.S. Employment Jumps By 130,000 Jobs In January, Much More Than Expected

02/11/2026 - 10:20:00 (RTTNews)

(RTTNews) - A closely watched report released by the Labor Department on Wednesday showed employment in the U.S. increased by much more than expected in the month of January.

The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 130,000 jobs in January after rising by a downwardly revised 48,000 jobs in December.

Economists had expected employment to climb by 70,000 jobs compared to the addition of 50,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

The stronger than expected job growth largely reflected a sharp increase in employment in the health care and social assistance sector, which surged by 123,500 jobs.

Notable job growth was also seen in the construction sector, while the government and financial activities sectors shed jobs.

"The January jobs report shows modest improvement relative to prior months," said Mortgage Bankers Association SVP and Chief Economist Mike Fratantoni.

"However, the job gains continue to be focused in just a few sectors, matching the uneven pace of economic growth we are seeing in many data releases," he added. "Overall, this report provides support for FOMC officials who have voted to keep rates steady for the time being."

The report also said the unemployment rate edged down to 4.3 percent in January from 4.4 percent in December, while economists had expected the unemployment rate to remain unchanged.

The unexpected dip by the unemployment rate came as the household survey measure of employment surged by 528,000 persons, while the labor force jumped by 387,000 persons.

The Labor Department also said average hourly employee earnings climbed by $0.15 or 0.4 percent to $37.17 in January.

Average hourly employee earnings in January were up by 3.7 percent compared to the same month a year ago, unchanged from a revised reading in December.

For comments and feedback: contact editorial@rttnews.com

Market News provided by RTTNews

RECENT INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL NEWS

Two-Year Note Auction Attracts Below Average Demand (01 hr(s), 18 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - Kicking off this week's series of announcements of the results of its long-term se ...Full Story»

Turkey Capacity Utilization Lowest Since August 2020; Business Confidence Eases (04 hr(s), 12 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - Turkey's manufacturing capacity utilization rate decreased for the third straight ...Full Story»

South Africa Leading Index Rises In January (04 hr(s), 57 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - South Africa's composite leading index improved somewhat in January after easing i ...Full Story»

Iceland Producer Price Inflation Rises To 5.5% (05 hr(s), 22 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - Iceland's industrial producer price inflation increased in February after easing i ...Full Story»

UK Private Sector Logs Slower Growth (05 hr(s), 23 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - The UK private sector registered a marked slowdown in business activity growth in Marc ...Full Story»

U.S. Labor Productivity Jumps Much Less Than Previously Estimated In Q4 (05 hr(s), 47 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - Revised data released by the Labor Department on Tuesday showed labor productivity in ...Full Story»

Eurozone Private Sector Growth Hits 10-Month Low (06 hr(s), 17 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - The euro area private sector growth eased to a ten-month low in March amid a reduction ...Full Story»

Poland Jobless Rate Rises To 6.1%, Highest Since September 2021 (06 hr(s), 47 min(s), 26 sec(s) ago)
(RTTNews) - The unemployment rate in Poland increased as expected in February to the highest level ...Full Story»