U.S. Created More Jobs in February

Businesses are hiring again and perhaps that means consumers will start buying again. After months of disappointment, the U.S. labor market showed signs of vigor in February as job growth accelerated and the unemployment rate fell for the third straight month.

Moreover, the payrolls count in December and January was revised higher by a cumulative 58,000. Payrolls rose by a revised 152,000 in December and by 63,000 in January.

According to the survey of 400,000 business establishments, private-sector payrolls increased by 222,000, the biggest jump since last April.

The nation’s unemployment rate fell to a seasonally adjusted 8.9% in February — the lowest level since April 2009 — from 9.0% in January, according to a separate survey of 60,000 households. Economists had been expecting the jobless rate to inch higher to 9.1%.

Unemployment dropped by 190,000 to 13.7 million for February, while employment rose, jumping 250,000 to 139.6 million.

The participation rate remained unchanged at 64.2%.

An alternate measure of employment, which includes discouraged workers and those forced to work part-time because of the weak economy, fell to 15.9% from 16.1%. The latest reading is also the lowest since April 2009.

Among all industries, 68.2% were hiring, up from 60.1% in January. This is the broadest range of hiring since May 1988.


The only real weakness was in government employment, which fell by 30,000. Local governments, many struggling with budget pressure, have cut 377,000 jobs since September 2008.