December Jobs Report Sets The Stage For Fed Decisions In 2026 |
The Bureau of Labor Statistics job market report for December, the last one for 2025, mostly shows a continuation of what we saw in earlier months: the labor market continues to create modest numbers of jobs, mostly in just a few key sectors. But overall, the job market is just limping along, finishing out 2025 with the same sluggishness we saw all year.
Payroll employment overall rose by 50,000 in December, nearly identical to the average monthly growth for all of 2025 (49,000). Once again, hiring was concentrated in health care (21,000), social assistance (17,000) and especially leisure and hospitality (47,000). Government jobs rose (13,000), mostly at the local level.
But payrolls actually fell in a number of important sectors. Employment declined in construction (-11,000), manufacturing (-8,000), professional services (-9,000) and especially retail trade (-25,000). Payroll growth........