This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-21294084

The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
US economy added 157,000 jobs in January US economy added 157,000 jobs in January
(35 minutes later)
The US economy added 157,000 jobs last month, which was slightly below forecasts, but the number of new jobs at the end of 2012 was revised up significantly, official data has shown.The US economy added 157,000 jobs last month, which was slightly below forecasts, but the number of new jobs at the end of 2012 was revised up significantly, official data has shown.
In November and December, the Labour Department's revised figures showed an additional 127,000 jobs were created than initially thought. In November and December, the Labor Department's revised figures showed that 127,000 more jobs were created than initially thought.
The unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9% in January, from 7.8% in December.The unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9% in January, from 7.8% in December.
The US economy unexpectedly shrank at the end of 2012. In 2012, an average of 181,000 jobs a month were created, href="http://bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm" >the data showed.
On Wednesday, government data indicated that the economy contracted at an annualised rate of 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2012. On Wednesday, government data indicated that the US economy unexpectedly shrank at an annualised rate of 0.1% in the fourth quarter of 2012.
'Positives and negatives'
The Labor Department said that in January, jobs were created in retail, construction, healthcare and wholesale trade, but jobs were lost in transportation and warehousing.
Employment in retail rose by 33,000, compared with an average monthly gain of 20,000 in 2012.
Employment in construction rose by 28,000. The Labor Department said that the industry had created 296,000 jobs since falling to a low in January 2011, but added that the current level of employment was still some two million below its previous peak in April 2006.
Healthcare added 23,000 jobs in January, while wholesale trade added 15,000.
There was little change in manufacturing employment, which has been essentially flat since July 2012.
On the downside, couriers and messengers lost 19,000 jobs, after strong seasonal hiring in November and December came to an end.
Darrell Cronk, regional chief investment officer for Wells Fargo Private Bank in New York, said: "Like most of our jobs reports, it seems like every month, there is something for everybody in this one - there are positives and negatives.
"It was certainly below expectations and a slight negative that we saw a tick up in the unemployment rate from 7.8% to 7.9%, especially with the labour force participation rate staying where it is, which suggests there aren't a vast influx of those unemployed/underemployed coming back being job seekers. That was disappointing."