Last month, the U.S. added only 18,000 jobs, the lowest job increase in four years, causing the unemployment rate to jump to 5%. The credit crunch, slow housing market, and staggering stock market are primarily to blame for the low number of new jobs. Specifically, the construction sector lost 49,000 jobs, and the manufacturing sector lost 31,000.

"There's nothing heartwarming about this report. It confirms what economists have been worried about, which is a broad-based economic slowdown," said Neal Soss, chief economist with Credit Suisse Group Inc in New York.

However, while there were losses across the nation, there were also gains. Healthcare, food service, and government were areas that saw positive growth.

+ View Archives

If this article has helped you in some way, will you say thanks by sharing it through a share, like, a link, or an email to someone you think would appreciate the reference.

Popular tags:

construction food services economic downturns employers United States manufacturing gains