The federal government released its August jobs report Friday, showing the U.S. economy added 1.8 million jobs last month with a lower-than-expected unemployment rate at 8.4%.
Some economists were forecasting an unemployment rate of 9.8%.
On Thursday, the U.S. Labor Department announced 881,000 people filed new jobless claims, the first time that number has dipped below 1 million in several weeks.
Economists were also forecasting that employers added 1.4 million jobs in August, according to a survey by data provider FactSet.
Friday’s report from the Labor Department added to evidence that nearly six months after the coronavirus paralyzed the country, the economy is mounting somewhat of a recovery.
After an epic collapse in the spring, when the economy shrank at a roughly 30% annual rate, growth has been rebounding as states have reopened at least parts of their economies.
Friday’s jobs data was the second-to-last employment report before Election Day, Nov. 3. President Donald Trump faces the task of seeking reelection in the worst economic downturn since the 1930s. Yet voters in surveys have generally given him higher marks on the economy than they have on other aspects of his presidency.
Roughly 29 million Americans are receiving state unemployment aid, although their total benefits, on average, have shrunk by more than half since the expiration of a $600-a-week federal supplement more than a month ago. The Trump administration has set up a program that will provide some of the unemployed with $300 a week.
The ongoing job losses and economic slump have left a rising share of Americans out of work for longer periods. From June to July, the number of people who were unemployed for 15 weeks or longer tripled to more than 6 million.
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