U.S. Chamber Statement on December Jobs Report

WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Chamber of Commerce Chief Economist Dr. Martin Regalia issued the following statement on the December employment report:

“Today’s jobs report indicates that more jobs were created than expected and that the unemployment rate drifted downward. Clearly this is a positive trend and not totally unexpected given the strong GDP growth in the fourth quarter. However, as you dig through the layers, two big questions pop up: 1) Will the economy continue to grow at the same pace it did in the fourth quarter? 2) Will the participation rate continue to fall or will it tick back up as people become more confident?

“The focus this year has to continue to be on improving the underlying growth in the economy because that is what will create jobs. Leaders in Washington must work together to remove impediments to growth and job creation by investing in infrastructure to rebuild our crumbling roads and bridges, increasing domestic energy, speeding up the permitting process so projects can get underway more quickly and remove other regulatory barriers that are weighing down the economy, approving the Keystone Pipeline permit, passing the intellectual property bills to protect jobs, and making American business more globally competitive by acting on comprehensive tax reform.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.