U.S. economy building steam: Quarter-million jobs added, wages increase

The U.S. economy added 257,000 jobs in January, as the unemployment rate rose to 5.7 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday.

More from the AP:

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers hired at a stellar pace last month, wages rose by the most in six years, and Americans responded by streaming into the job market to find work.

The Labor Department said Friday that the economy gained a seasonally adjusted 257,000 jobs in January, and added far more in previous months than originally estimated. Businesses added 414,000 jobs in November, the government now says, the most in 17 years. Total job gains in December were also revised higher, to 329,000, up from 252,000.

Average hourly wages, meanwhile, jumped 12 cents to $24.75, the biggest gain since September 2008. In the past year, hourly pay has increased 2.2 percent.

The unemployment rate rose to 5.7 percent from 5.6 percent. But that's not necessarily a bad thing. More Americans began looking for jobs, though not all found work. Their job hunting suggests they are more confident about their prospects.

That is ahead of inflation, which rose just 0.7 percent in 2014. The sharp drop in gas prices in the past year has held down inflation and boosted Americans' spending power. Still, wages typically increase at a 3.5 percent pace in a fully healthy economy.

Irn Bru wrote:Things on the up then Ben? Good news all round if it is because the US economy had a knock on effect for the economies of so many other countries in the West.