US Unemployment Rate Drops to 4.1% in December,
The US Labor Department reported a decrease in the unemployment rate to 4.1% in December, down from 4.2% in the previous month. The number of the unemployed decreased to 6.9 million.
According to the department, US companies created around 256,000 new jobs outside of agriculture. The number of long-term unemployed people decreased to 1.6 million.
US labor market data are closely watched by investors worldwide. If the labor market is robust and inflation is high, interest rate cuts become less likely. This would be a welcome development for stock market players, as it would make the savings account less attractive as an alternative to stocks, and companies and other actors would have cheaper access to credit.