US adds only 20,000 jobs in February; unemployment falls to 3.8%

Published On: March 9, 2019 10:54 AM NPT By: Agencies


US adds only 20,000 jobs in February; unemployment falls to 3.8%

WASHINGTON, March 8: Job creation ground to a virtual halt in the United States last month as employers in a range of industries began to shed workers, but despite that the unemployment rate fell, the government reported Friday. 

US employers added just 20,000 net new positions for the month, only a fraction of what economists had been expecting, while the jobless rate fell two tenths to 3.8 percent, its lowest level since October, according to the closely-watched Labor Department report. 

Meanwhile, hourly wages saw their biggest gains in nearly a decade, more evidence of the tight labor market. 

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