The US labor market rebounded in December, with job growth exceeding economists’ expectations by a mile and the unemployment rate unexpectedly falling.
The economy added 256,000 jobs last month Bureau of Labor Statistics It was reported on Friday, beating expectations of 160,000, up from 212,000 in November (revised from 227,000 originally reported).
The unemployment rate fell to 4.1% in December versus 4.2% expected and 4.2% in November.
Trying to rally from significant declines earlier this week, Bitcoin (BTC) fell more than 2% in the immediate aftermath of the report to $92,800.
Today’s labor market readings came after a number of recent economic reports antiquities A broad market decline across asset classes as investors quickly discounted the idea of a sustained series of Fed rate cuts in 2025.
Previously high-flying cryptocurrency markets bore the brunt of the sell-off, with bitcoin falling from around $103,000 on Monday to below $92,000 at one point on Thursday. Major altcoins suffered larger declines on a percentage basis.
Examining traditional markets, US stock index futures are down about 1% after the jobs print. The strongest reaction was in the bond market, where the 10-year Treasury yield rose nine basis points to 4.78%. The dollar index also rose by 0.6%. Gold fell slightly to just under $2,700 an ounce.
Traders are quickly trimming their bets on further Fed rate cuts in 2025, with odds of a move in March 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% from 44% previously.
In other closely watched details of the report, average hourly earnings rose 0.3% in December compared to expectations of 0.3% and 0.4% in November. On a yearly basis, average hourly earnings rose 3.9% versus expectations of 4% and the November reading of 4%.
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