A STRONG employment report for January calmed fears of a recession (Shutterstock).

Hiring in the United States grew strongly in January, pushing back against fears of a possible recession.

The New York Times reported that the Labor Department on Friday stated that 517,000 new jobs were added that month, reversing three months of decline.

Additionally, the unemployment rate slipped to 3.4 percent, the lowest since 1969. Traditionally, 4 percent is considered “full employment.”

A balloon-ing crisis with China

A huge balloon that was seen flying over Montana this week is from China, prompting U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken to cancel a planned visit to China.

U.S SECRETARY of State Antony Blinken (Ukraine govt. photo).

According to United Press International, the Chines government claims it was a civilian airship doing meteorological research and drifted off-course.

Blinken said, “We are convinced this is a Chinese surveillance balloon.”

Also in the news … About one in six defendants charged in connection with the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol who expressed contrition before sentencing  have since backtracked, according to The Associated Press.

Sports: Ukraine may leave if Russians play

Ukraine will pull its athletes from the 2024 Summer Olympic Games in Paris if Russian athletes are allowed to compete.

According to The New York Times, the top Ukrainian sports official said Friday that his nation would rally allies to convince the International Olympic Committee to ban athletes from Russia and its close ally, Belarus from the games.

Weather: Cloudy to sunny

Sometimes the weekend is less fun than the week. The forecast for the West Orange County area forSaturday is for partly cloudy skies, with a daytime high of 71 and overnight low of 51. Sunday will see morning clouds and afternoon sun, with a high of 64 and a low of 43. A warming trend begins on Monday with sunny skies and a high of 68 (47). The sunshine is expected to continue through Thursday of the coming week.