The U.S. jobs market accelerated in December, with job growth far exceeding economists’ forecasts and the unemployment rate falling unexpectedly.
The economy added 256,000 jobs last month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, beating forecasts of 160,000 and up from 212,000 in November (revised from the 227,000 originally reported).
The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in December compared to 4.2% expected and 4.2% in November.
Attempting to recover after significant declines earlier this week, bitcoin (BTC) fell more than 2% immediately after the report’s release, to $92,800.
Today’s labor market figures come after a number of recent economic reports triggered a widespread market selloff across asset classes as investors quickly gave up on the idea of a series continued Federal Reserve rate cuts in 2025.
Previously high-flying crypto markets were hit hardest by the sell-off, with bitcoin falling from nearly $103,000 on Monday to below $92,000 at one point on Thursday. Major altcoins suffered even larger declines in percentage terms.
A check of traditional markets reveals that U.S. stock index futures fell about 1% following the job release. The strongest reaction is in the bond market, with the 10-year Treasury yield rising nine basis points to 4.78%. The dollar index is also higher, up 0.6%. Gold edged lower to just below $2,700 an ounce.
Traders are quickly reducing their bets on further Fed rate cuts in 2025, with the odds of a March decision falling to 28% from 41% just before the report was released, according to CME FedWatch. The odds of a rate cut in May fell to 34%, down from 44%.
In other closely watched reporting details, average hourly wages rose 0.3% in December, compared to a forecast of 0.3% and 0.4% in November. On an annual basis, the average hourly wage was 3.9% higher than expectations of 4% and November’s 4%.
