US adds 216,000 jobs in December, much higher than estimates

By Ovunc Kutlu

ISTANBUL (AA) – The US economy added 216,000 jobs in December, much higher than market estimates, the Labor Department announced on Friday.

The market expectation for nonfarm payrolls was to show a gain of 170,000 in December.

Job additions for November, on the other hand, were revised down by 26,000 from 199,000 to 173,000, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The unemployment rate, however, remained unchanged at 3.7% in December, compared to the previous month.

The market estimate for the figure was to come in at 3.8%.

Also, the number of unemployed people also remained unchanged at 6.3 million, according to the Labor Department.