US employment in May grew at a faster pace than market expectations. The strong data is another sign that the effects of the coronavirus pandemic are fading in the world's largest economy.

The Labor Department said on Friday that nonfarm payrolls increased by 390,000 from the previous month. Economists predicted a rise of 300,000.

The jobless rate was unchanged at 3.6 percent.

Job growth was seen in a wide range of sectors, including construction, hospitality, transportation and warehousing.

Average hourly earnings increased by 5.2 percent over the past 12 months. The high growth is attributed to wage hikes amid a labor shortage.

The US Federal Reserve is tightening monetary policy to tame inflation. Policymakers are expected to decide on an interest rate hike of half a percentage point at a meeting starting June 14.

There are market concerns that the Fed's hikes may dampen the economy too much.