Job growth slows sharply in March (zz)# Stock
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http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-economy-jobs-201
Employers added a modest 120,000 new jobs in March, ending a streak of solid
job gains in the prior three months and raising fresh questions about the
strength of the economy and hiring momentum in coming months.
The nation's jobless rate inched down to 8.2% from 8.3% in February, the
Labor Department said Friday, but that came amid a shrinking labor force in
which more people dropped out of the job market and thus weren't counted as
unemployed.
Analysts were expecting growth of about 210,000 jobs in March, after gains
of more than 220,000 in each of the prior three months. Some of those
earlier gains may have been influenced by the unseasonably warm weather, so
the latest slowdown could have been in part due to a kind of payback for the
inflated payrolls in the winter.
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-economy-jobs-201
Retailers shed 34,000 jobs last month, most of them at department stores and
other general merchandise outlets. Most other sectors added jobs in March,
but at a slower pace.
On the positive side, manufacturing continued to steam ahead, adding a
robust 37,000 new positions over the month. And government payrolls, which
fell sharply last year, were essentially flat.
Still, after the winter acceleration in new hires, the latest job growth
numbers disappointed analysts and clouded the outlook for an economy that
has generally been improving. Friday's report showed that the total hours
worked by all employees, considered a leading indicator, dipped lower last
month.
"Employers spent a great deal of time and attention reducing costs over the
past few years and apparently do not yet see enough solid evidence to
sharply reverse course on hiring," said Ken Goldstein, an economist at the
Conference Board, an employer-support research organization. "This could
presage more disappointing job counts later this spring."
Employers added a modest 120,000 new jobs in March, ending a streak of solid
job gains in the prior three months and raising fresh questions about the
strength of the economy and hiring momentum in coming months.
The nation's jobless rate inched down to 8.2% from 8.3% in February, the
Labor Department said Friday, but that came amid a shrinking labor force in
which more people dropped out of the job market and thus weren't counted as
unemployed.
Analysts were expecting growth of about 210,000 jobs in March, after gains
of more than 220,000 in each of the prior three months. Some of those
earlier gains may have been influenced by the unseasonably warm weather, so
the latest slowdown could have been in part due to a kind of payback for the
inflated payrolls in the winter.
http://www.latimes.com/business/money/la-fi-mo-economy-jobs-201
Retailers shed 34,000 jobs last month, most of them at department stores and
other general merchandise outlets. Most other sectors added jobs in March,
but at a slower pace.
On the positive side, manufacturing continued to steam ahead, adding a
robust 37,000 new positions over the month. And government payrolls, which
fell sharply last year, were essentially flat.
Still, after the winter acceleration in new hires, the latest job growth
numbers disappointed analysts and clouded the outlook for an economy that
has generally been improving. Friday's report showed that the total hours
worked by all employees, considered a leading indicator, dipped lower last
month.
"Employers spent a great deal of time and attention reducing costs over the
past few years and apparently do not yet see enough solid evidence to
sharply reverse course on hiring," said Ken Goldstein, an economist at the
Conference Board, an employer-support research organization. "This could
presage more disappointing job counts later this spring."
