U.S. employers posted far fewer jobs in November than the previous month, a sign that employers aren’t yet ramping up hiring even as growth has picked up.

Hiring ticked down in December, defying the Federal Reserve's effort to boost hiring with a recent series of interest rate cuts, a jobs report on Friday showed. The reading fell short of economists' expectations. The U.S. added 50,000 jobs in December, which marked a slight drop from 64,000 jobs added in the previous month.

Finding a job continued to be a slog at the end of the year, new data shows: US businesses sought out fewer workers in November and hiring rates wilted even further.

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Employers have added jobs in recent months but the unemployment rate has risen. Data for December will be closely watched for clues on the health of the labor market.