Unemployment rate falls to 4.9%; Nov. payrolls revised higher

This puts the total jobs produced in 2005 at 2,000,000, not too shabby for a "Hoover economy".

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) - U.S. job growth slowed in December to 108,000 even as the unemployment rate fell unexpectedly to a cyclical low of 4.9%, the Labor Department said Friday.

The seasonally adjusted growth in nonfarm payrolls was less than the 205,000 expected by economists, but upward revisions to prior months totaling 71,000 put total payrolls near the expected level of 134.5 million.

November's net job growth was revised to 305,000 from 215,000 previously. It was the largest gain in more than a year.

In December, average hourly wages increased 5 cents, or 0.3%, to $16.34. Average wages rose 3.1% in 2005.