What the surprisingly strong jobs report means for inflation and interest rates

U.S. employers hired nearly twice as many workers as expected in January.

U.S. employers hired far more workers than expected in January, a staggering flex of economic strength that refutes worries of a recession but could delay highly-anticipated interest rate cuts.

The economy added 353,000 jobs last month while the unemployment rate held steady at 3.7%, a historically low figure, according to data released by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday.

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The blockbuster performance, however, poses a challenge for the inflation fight taken up by policymakers at the Federal Reserve.

Inflation has fallen significantly from a peak reached last year, but it remains roughly a percentage point higher than the Fed’s target rate of 2%.

In light of its progress in cooling inflation, the Fed expects to cut interest rates sometime this year. However, the hot economy could delay those interest cuts for several months, experts told ABC News on Friday.