US economy adds 227,000 jobs in January, unemployment rate up slightly
The first jobs report of 2017 crushed it.
The U.S. economy added 227,000 jobs in January, above economists' expectations of 180,000. This extends the record streak of job creation in the U.S.
However, wages in January rose by just 2.5% year-over-year, below expectations of 2.7%.
RELATED: Long-term unemployment rate in the United States
And the unemployment rate ticked up slightly to 4.8%, following the prior month's reading 4.7%.
The survey reference period is the pay period including the 12th of the month. Therefore, technically, this jobs report looks at numbers from the final days of the Obama administration. At the same time, various sentiment indicators have ticked up in the months after Trump's election, suggesting that the new president may have influenced these figures.
RELATED: Unemployment rate and jobs added/lost in the US
Most analysts had been gearing up for a solid jobs report, with consensus expectations for nonfarm payrolls to increase by about 175,000. However, some folks argued the report could surprise on the upside given solid economic data in the past week.
"Data in the past week, however, have introduced some upside risk and thus another 200k+ payroll print cannot be excluded," wrote a TD Securities US strategy team led by Michael Hanson, chief of US macro strategy, in a note to clients.
RELATED: Unemployment in the US
SEE ALSO: Legendary physicist Freeman Dyson talks about math, nuclear rockets, and astounding things about the universe
NOW WATCH: These are the 10 best highest-paying jobs in America for 2017
