The U.S. unemployment rate fell to 7.5 percent in April – the lowest it has been since December 2008 – as payrolls increased by 165,000 and the government raised its prior projections for job gains in February and March.
Private-sector employment increased by 176,000 in April from the previous month, while government agencies trimmed 11,000 positions.
The U.S. Department of Labor revised its employment estimates for February and March, saying that 114,000 more individuals were employed in those months than initially thought. The overall gains brought unemployment down a tenth of a percentage point from 7.6 percent in March.
Economists had predicted the U.S. economy would add 140,000 jobs in April, with the unemployment rate holding steady.
The problem is 9.5 million plus people have left the labor force since December 2008. That’s why the headline unemployment number appears to be improving. There are so many fewer people in the count, which makes the 7.5% number look better than it really is.
Also if you did a little deeper into the numbers, you will see that there are not enough jobs for those recently out of college .
I’m not excited about this report at all.