The Economy

THE MORNING JOLT BY JIM GERAGHTY The Economy Is Humming Along Nicely

http://www.nationalreview.com/morning-jolt/455945/economy-humming-along-nicely?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=180131_Jolt&utm_term=Jolt

Excerpt: Take your pick, do you prefer good news about job creation . . . The new year got off to a strong start for job creation, with businesses adding 234,000 [jobs] in January, according to a report Wednesday from ADP and Moody’s Analytics. Economists surveyed by Reuters had been looking for private payrolls to grow by 185,000. ... Or good news about wages? U.S. workers’ wages and benefits grew 2.6 percent last year, the fastest 12-month pace since the spring of 2015. The 12-month gain in wages and benefits came despite a slight slowdown at the end of last year with wages and benefits rising 0.6 percent in the fourth quarter, a tiny dip from a 0.7 percent gain in the third quarter. Still, the 12-month gain was an improvement from a 2.2 percent gain for the 12 months ending in December 2016.