Job growth in the United States was significantly stronger than expected in June. According to the U.S. government, 372,000 jobs were added last month, an average of 265,000 new jobs. The unemployment rate remained steady at 3.6 percent.

Labor market conditions in the US play an important role in the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy. The US Federal Reserve has previously signaled that it wants to aggressively combat inflation, which is at its highest level in more than 40 years. Strong job growth gives the central bank more room to raise interest rates quickly.

Also, the jobs report showed average hourly wages increased by 10 cents. That was up 0.3 percent to 32.08 dollars (31.61 euros). On average, wages have risen by more than 5 percent in a year. The number of adults in work remained unchanged at 62.2 percent of the labor force. The US economy added 2.7 million jobs in the first half of the year. That number is more than the entire years of this century.