Business
African American unemployment dips slightly as U.S. economy adds 165,000 jobs in April
Job applicants fill out applications for positions at a new bar and restaurant in Detroit. PHOTO/Paul Sancya/AP
U.S. employers added 165,000 jobs in April, and hiring was much stronger in the previous two months than the government first estimated. The job increases reduced the unemployment rate from 7.6 percent to a four-year low of 7.5 percent.
African American unemployment dropped only slightly from 13.3 to 13.2 percent.
The report Friday from the Labor Department was a reassuring sign that the U.S. job market is improving despite higher taxes and government spending cuts that took effect this year.
The government revised up its estimate of job gains in February and March by a combined 114,000. It now says employers added 332,000 jobs in February and 138,000 in March. The economy has created an average of 208,000 jobs a month from November through April — above the 138,000 added in the previous six months.
“This is a good report,” said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo. “There’s a lot of strength – It’s good for the economy. It’s good for people’s income.”
The stronger job growth suggests that the federal budget cutting “does not mean recession,” Silvia said. “It does not mean a dramatic slowdown.”
Stock prices soared when trading began on Wall Street at 9:30 a.m EST. The Dow was up 155 points in early trading.
