“The growth of employment was widespread, led by the leisure and hospitality, professional and business services, and healthcare sectors,” the report added.
The figure contradicted forecasts of a slowdown in the creation of employmentand marks a strong increase after the more than 260,000 generated in December.
As central banks embark on an aggressive campaign to curb inflation, a key area of concern is the labor market, with demand outpacing the supply of available workers and employers eager to retain staff.
Although the unemployment tends to increase when interest rates rise, the unemployment rate has remained at historically low levels. In fact, it is the lowest point since 1969 of the unemployment rate (3.4%), according to Banco Base.
The Fed has also been watching wage growth for fear that rising wages could feed into inflation. In January, the median hourly wage rose 0.3% to $33.03, according to the Labor Department.
“This is one of the largest differences between forecasts and results, as well as one of the best Januarys in the historical record, which has been a shock to the markets’ medium-term expectations, since until now the baseline scenario contemplated that the Federal Reserve would stop raising rates soon to avoid damaging the growth trend,” said Monex.
With information from AFP
