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Employers Unexpectedly Slash Jobs in Aug.
9 minutes ago Add Business - Reuters to My Yahoo!

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. employers cut jobs in August at the fastest pace
since March, the government said in an unexpectedly grim report on Friday
showing Americans are struggling to find jobs even as other areas of the economy
are recovering.

The number of workers on U.S. payrolls outside the farm sector slid 93,000 in
August, the seventh consecutive month of declines, after dropping 49,000 in
July. The number was far worse than the increase of 12,000 expected by
economists.

A recent string of better than expected data on retail sales, durable goods,
consumer sentiment and housing, had led economists to believe the tough labor
market might be starting to improve.

The unemployment rate fell, but only to 6.1 percent from 6.2 percent in the
previous month. ****ysts had expected the unemployment rate to hold steady at
6.2 percent.

The Labor Department (news - web sites) said the Aug. 14 blackout, which hit the
Northeast United States during the survey week, probably had little impact on
the numbers.

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