U.S. job growth strengthened sharply in the first month of 2026.
According to a report Wednesday from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 130,000 new jobs were created in January. Economists predict jobs will be added by 70,000, up from 48,000 in December.
The unemployment rate fell to 4.3%, compared with expectations of 4.4%, and compared with 4.4% in December.
Bitcoin has spent much of the week trading in a tight range near $69,000 In the hours leading up to the report, the price fell back to the $67,000 area. Bitcoin prices immediately jumped to $67,500 following the release of the strong data, but are still down 2% in the past 24 hours.
After cutting interest rates multiple times in the second half of 2025, the Fed kept policy steady at its January meeting, and members showed little inclination to resume rate cuts at their next meeting in March.
Ahead of this morning’s jobs data, interest rate traders saw only a 21% chance of easing policy in March. After this morning’s pace, that number may drop.
