The U.S. labor market showed surprising strength in January, adding far more jobs than economists anticipated and revealing a significant increase in wage growth.

The jobs report, published Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, includes the following data:

- Non-farm payrolls increased by 353,000 in January, a jump from the upwardly revised figure of 333,000 for December and well above the expected 180,000. It’s the largest monthly job gain since January 2023.
- The unemployment rate remained steady at 3.7%, below the expected 3.8%.
- Average hourly earnings showed 0.6% growth for the month, a sharp increase from the previous 0.4% and below the predicted 0.3%.
- On an annual basis, wage growth increase to 4.5%, which was above both the prior 4.4% and expected rate of 4.1%.