More solid job growth in the United States in January has demonstrated the underlying strength in the world’s largest economy.<br /><br /> Payrolls increased by 257,000 last month and the numbers for November and December was significantly revised upwards by a total of 147,000. <br /><br /> Wages also rebounded strongly, after December’s surprise drop.<br /><br /> At 423,000, November’s payroll gains were the largest since May 2010. There were 329,00 jobs added in December. <br /><br /> While the unemployment rate increased from 5.6 percent to 5.7 percent, that was because the labour force increased in size, a sign of confidence in the jobs market.<br /><br /> The share of working-age Americans who are employed or at least looking for a job, also rose. <br /><br /> This all comes despite US economic growth slowing. Growth braked to a 2.6 percent annual rate in the fourth quarter of 2014.<br /><br /> The pick-up in wages, combined with lower oil prices, is likely to give a big boost to consumer spending keeping the US economy growing at a fairly healthy
