United States employers slashed 84 000 jobs in August and the jobless rate jumped to a five-year high of 6,1%, according to a government report on Friday suggesting fragile economic conditions.
The Labour Department report — considered one of the best indicators of economic momentum — marked the eighth consecutive month of shrinking non-farm payrolls, and was worse than expected by private economists.
Wall Street analysts had expected a loss of 75 000 jobs and a steady unemployment rate of 5,7%.
The agency also revised its figures from the prior two months to show a loss of 60 000 positions in July and 100 000 in June, up from earlier estimates of a drop of 51 000 in each of the two months.
The latest figures show a cumulative loss of 605 000 US jobs since the start of 2008, highlighting the woes of the world’s largest economy from a horrific housing slump and credit squeeze. — AFP