US economy sees robust jobs growth in December

Jobs growth in the US remained strong last month even as the economy wrestled with the impact of fast-rising prices.

Employers added 223,000 positions in December, pushing the jobless rate down to 3.5%, from 3.6% in November.

The resilience of the labour market has raised hopes that the world's largest economy will avoid a severe economic downturn this year.

The US central bank is raising borrowing costs to try to cool the economy and ease the price pressures.

But hiring has held up, despite the weight of higher interest rates.