The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that the economy created 148,000 new seasonally adjusted jobs in December. Of those, 146,000 were generated in the private sector and 2,000 in the public sector. The “headline” rate of unemployment remained unchanged at 4.1 percent. Another measure of unemployment, which includes both underemployment and some discouraged workers, clocked in at 8.1 percent, a rise of 0.1 point for the second consecutive month.

The consensus of economists surveyed ahead of the report’s release was for 190,000-200,000 new jobs.

The survey period ends around the 12th of each month, so the December report released today covers the last half of November and the first half of December, not December alone. Full-time and part-time positions are included in the bureau’s tally. A person who has worked a single hour a week during the survey period is counted as employed.

Economists differ significantly over how much impact presidents have on job creation. But the comparisons will inevitably be made, particularly by the current occupant of the White House; if not today, then soon enough. So, let me note that for the 11-month period of February-December 2016, on President Obama’s watch, the economy grew by 2.114 million jobs. In the same period of 2017, under Pr*sident Trump, it grew by 1.839 million jobs.

2011: 2.09 million new jobs

2012: 2.14 million new jobs

2013: 2.30 million new jobs

2014: 3.00 million new jobs

2015: 2.71 million new jobs

2016: 2.24 million new jobs

2017: 2.06 million new jobs

Wages rose more than they have been. For all workers, the average wage rose 9 cents an hour. On a year-to-year basis, the average gain was 65 cents, a 2.5 percent rise against an annual inflation rate of 1.7 percent. Still just treading water.

The bureau estimates the number of jobs each month by analyzing the Current Employment Survey of 147,000 business establishments. The unemployment rate is calculated from the Current Population Survey of 60,000 households. Formulas are applied to each month’s count—seasonal adjustments—to smooth out peaks and troughs in job creation or loss as the year progresses.

In each month’s report, the job growth-or-loss estimates for the previous two months are revised to account for the more complete data that are available now than when those reports were originally released. The bureau revised November’s numbers from 228,000 to 252,000, and October’s from 244,000 to 211,000.