Details on Employment Report

The economy added a total of 103,000 jobs in December. That is far below consensus expectations for a gain of 150,000. The small increase is particularly disappointing relative to the numbers put out on Wednesday by ADP that showed a gain of 297,000 private sector jobs.

Government payrolls declined by 10,000 and the private sector added a total of 113,000. The consensus was looking for a decline of 12,000 government jobs and thus also for a gain of 162,000 private sector jobs. On the other hand, the unemployment rate, which is derived from a separate survey, showed a surprising drop to “just” 9.4% from 9.8% in November. That is the lowest rate since May 2009.

The numbers for October and November were revised higher. Once those are factored in, the overall levels of employment are actually higher than the consensus was looking for. In November we actually gained 71,000 jobs, not 39,000. In October we gained 210,000 jobs, not 172,000 as was reported last month. (more)