U.S. employment growth slowed more than expected in December amid job losses in the construction, retail and manufacturing sectors, but a decline in the unemployment rate to 4.4% suggested the labor market was not rapidly deteriorating.

The Labor Department released the December jobs report, which showed the U.S. economy added jobs at a modest pace to close out 2025 amid economic uncertainty.

2025 was marked by relatively strong job growth in the first few months, followed by cooling, with some months showing net job losses after revisions.

U.S. job growth likely slowed in December amid business caution about hiring because of import tariffs and rising artificial intelligence investment.

New data showed which sectors added more jobs than others in 2025. Healthcare had a lot of job growth, while the federal government lost a lot.

The latest data means 2025 saw the weakest annual job growth since 2003, with just 584,000 jobs added last year.

U. job growth slowed more than expected in December amid business caution about hiring because of import tariffs and rising artificial intelligence investment, but the unemployment rate dipped ​to 4.

Employers added 50,000 jobs in the final month of 2025, according to Labor Department data, which was fewer than expected. But the unemployment rate dipped to 4.4%. Job gains last year were the weakest since 2020, when the Covid pandemic led to widespread cuts.

Hiring slowed more than expected in December, a sluggish end to what was one of the weakest years of job growth in decades, a dynamic that further amplified America’s affordability crisis.

U.S. job openings dropped to a 14-month low in November while hiring resumed its sluggish tone, pointing to ebbing demand for labor amid policy uncertainty related to import tariffs and the integration of artificial intelligence in some work roles.