The U.S. economy added fewer jobs in January than economists had forecast, although the jobless rate edged lower.

But first a bit of background: The numbers in Friday’s jobs report most likely will change in the months (and years) to come.

Friday’s report provided evidence of slowing expansion. The 143,000 jobs added would be the weakest January total since 2016.

Economists are betting that 2025 kicked off with cooler levels of job growth. But overall stable labor conditions should keep ...