Moody's Corporation : U.S. December nonfarm payrolls could be 230,000: Moody's Analytics' Zandi

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. nonfarm payrolls for December could come in around 230,000, Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said on Wednesday.

The unemployment rate, meanwhile, will likely stay at 7 percent, he said.

The U.S. Labor Department's report on nonfarm payrolls is slated for release on January 10, and a Reuters survey of economists shows an expectation for 197,000 jobs created in the month.

U.S. private employers added a bigger-than-expected 238,000 jobs in December, the strongest increase in 13 months, a report by a payrolls processor showed on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Sam Forgione Editing by W Simon)