US Fed chair says job market strongest in decade

Washington, Dec 20 : US Federal Reserve chair Janet Yellen has said that the slow economic recovery has boosted the improvement in the job market.

"After years of slow economic recovery, you are entering the strongest job market in nearly a decade," Yellen told graduating students at the University of Baltimore on Monday, Xinhua news agency reported.

She cited the low unemployment rate, steady job gains, low layoff rate and signs of rising wages as evidence of a healthy labour market.

The central bank chair did not discuss the monetary policy in her speech. 

US Fed last week had raised the benchmark interest rate after one-year pause, and indicated its confidence in the economy.

In her speech, Yellen stressed the importance of education in helping people get a job.

"While globalisation is likely to continue and technology will continue to advance, we don't know how fast the economy will grow, what new technologies will be developed, or how quickly and consistently employment will expand," Yellen said.

"What is considerably more certain, however, is that success will continue to be tied to education, in part because a good education enhances one's ability to adapt to a changing economy."

At many occasions, Yellen has called for more investment in education to boost productivity, as the productivity growth in the US remained low for years affecting the wage growth and weighting down on living standards.