WASHINGTON – Companies created 268,000 jobs in April, the most since February 2006. The gains were widespread. Retailers, factories, financial companies, education and health care and even construction companies all added jobs.
After subtracting cuts by federal, state and local governments, the economy added 244,000 net jobs last month, the Labor Department said Friday. That marked the third straight month in which more than 200,000 jobs were created, the best three month hiring spree in five years. Job gains in March and February were even stronger than first reported.
The unemployment rate ticked up to 9 percent from 8.8 percent in March, the first increase since November. The government uses a separate survey to calculate the unemployment rate. The survey sometimes diverges from a separate survey used to number of jobs employers added.
The latest employment figures suggest businesses are confident in the economy despite weak growth earlier this year and soaring gas prices. Stocks rose after the employment report was released. The Dow Jones industrial average gained more than 168 points in morning trading.
Companies are finally starting to spend the nearly $2 trillion in cash that they stockpiled after the recession ended in June 2009, economists say. Businesses are gaining confidence in
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