Golden Finance reported that LPL Financial analyst Jeffrey Roach said that the U.S. private sector will create an average of 149,000 new jobs per month in 2024, down from 192,000 in 2023, and is expected to decline again in 2025. Nonfarm payrolls surged by 256,000 in December and the unemployment rate fell slightly (against the backdrop of possible mass deportations of illegal immigrants), raising concerns that the Federal Reserve may even need to raise interest rates. But there may be more optimism behind the data. "More than 16% of the non-labor force is foreign-born, including undocumented immigrants, so the economic impact of tightening immigration policy may not be as harmful as some suggest," Roach said. "At the same time, the Fed will Keep interest rates unchanged."