WASHINGTON — The U.S. job market appears to be entering 2020 on a solid footing.
Economists expect that Friday’s jobs report will show job gains of 160,000 in December, with the unemployment rate holding steady at 3.5%, according to the data provider FactSet.
But key in the report will be whether the decade-plus expansion causes average hourly earnings to climb above the 3.1% annual gain seen in November as employers find themselves paying more to attract workers.
