U.S. jobs growth comes in weak

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the economy added 143,000 jobs in January, below the anticipated 170,000. This marks a slowdown from December's revised gain of 307,000 jobs. Despite the deceleration, the unemployment rate decreased to 4.0%, the lowest since May. Revisions to previous months' data added 100,000 jobs to prior estimates, which softened the blow of the weak January number. Major U.S. stock indices declined, with the S&P 500 decreasing by 0.9%, and the Nasdaq Composite dropping by 1.4%. These declines were attributed to the lower-than-expected job additions and a decrease in consumer sentiment.