Washington: The United States added 103,000 jobs in September, an improvement over this summer and just enough to calm fears of a new recession that have hung over Wall Street and the nation for weeks.
The Labour Department also said yesterday that the nation added more jobs than first estimated in July and August. The government's first reading had said the economy added zero jobs in August. The unemployment rate stayed at 9.1 per cent. While the report was clearly better than feared, it also showed the economy is not gaining much momentum, said Tom Porcelli, chief US economist at RBC Capital Markets.
"It moves you away from the ledge," he said.
The report sent the stock market higher. The Dow Jones industrial average was up about 90 points, slightly less than 1 per cent, at mid-morning. In the bond market, yields rose, another sign that investors welcomed the news.
Slower hiring has put pressure on President Barack Obama little more than a year before the 2012 election. With Obama facing a tough re-election battle and declining approval ratings, the Republicans see him as vulnerable and have been blocking much of his agenda. Obama in recent days has taken a tougher new tone to push a job-creation plan aimed at reducing unemployment.
He argued on Thursday that without his nearly $450-billion (Dh1.65 trillion) package of tax cuts and public works spending, hiring and growth will be weaker. He said the bill could help prevent another downturn if Europe's debt crisis worse.
