ECONOMY

Despite Weak Jobs Growth, Unemployment Dropped in April

Updated: May 29, 2013 | 9:45 p.m.
May 4, 2012 | 8:35 a.m.

In this February photo, people look for work at Job Train employment center in Menlo Park, Calif. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)

The U.S. economy picked up 115,000 jobs in April as the politically important unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent, the Labor Department reported on Friday.

The number comes on the heels of initially reported payroll growth of just 120,000 in March, a disappointing result following three months of over-200,000 growth. Economists will take the April report as another sign that the recovery is slowing, as it did in the previous two springs.

The number failed to meet expectations, with economists surveyed by Reuters expecting payroll growth of 170,000. Growth in February and March, however, were both revised upwards.

With weak jobs growth and a drop in the unemployment rate, the latest report should offer campaign fodder for both parties.

Get the latest news and analysis delivered to your inbox. Sign up for National Journal's morning alert, Wake-Up Call, and afternoon newsletter, The Edge. Subscribe here.


Leave A Comment
The National Journal Group has the right (but not the obligation) to monitor the comments and to remove any materials it deems inappropriate.
Comments powered by Disqus
Follow National Journal
Related Content
Most Read Articles
Special Section

A Gloomy Outlook for the Working-Class American

The U.S. economy once worked like a finely meshed machine. Not anymore.

Columns
Josh Kraushaar: Against the Grain

Why Democrats Are Already Jumping Aboard the Hillary Clinton Bandwagon

1:57 p.m.
Claire McCaskill's endorsement was a bow to reality: Democrats don't want to challenge Clinton in 2016.
Charlie Cook: Off to the Races

No Guarantee of a GOP Senate Majority

June 17, 2013
The disproportionate exposure for the chamber’s Democrats is very clear. But can Republicans capitalize on their opportunities?
Ronald Brownstein: Political Connections

Why We Lack Good Privacy Guidelines

June 13, 2013
Technology innovations have served to strip away privacy. They could also be the key to restoring it.
More Columns »
Get a trial subscription to National Journal magazine.