US economy creates 200,000 jobs in December

The unemployment rate continues to fall

 

 

The US economy created 200,000 jobs in December, marking the sixth month in a row of gains, official figures show.

The rise was much more than expected. Analysts had forecast an increase of about 150,000 jobs.
The unemployment rate dropped to 8.5%, which was the lowest level in nearly three years, from a revised 8.7% in November, the Labor Department said.
Large job gains were seen in retail, manufacturing, transportation and warehousing and healthcare.
For 2011 as a whole, some 1.6 million jobs were created, which was the highest since 2006, led by rises in the private sector.

Employment in the private sector rose by 212,000 in December and by 1.9 million over the year.
Government employment was little changed in December but was down by 280,000 over the year.
The unemployment rate had remained stubbornly high at about 9% for several years. But December marked the third month in a row that it has fallen.
However, November's figure was revised up slightly from 8.6% to 8.7%.