U.S. Employment Climbs Less Than Expected In January

(RTTNews) - While the Labor Department released a report on Friday showing employment in the U.S. increased by less than expected in the month of January, the report also showed the unemployment rate unexpectedly edged slightly lower.

The closely watched report said non-farm payroll employment rose by 143,000 jobs in January after surging by an upwardly revised 307,000 jobs in December.

Economists had expected employment to climb by 170,000 jobs compared to the jump of 256,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.

Meanwhile, the report said the unemployment rate dipped to 4.0 percent in January from 4.1 percent in December. The unemployment rate was expected to remain unchanged.