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The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week while the trade deficit in June was the smallest in 1-1/2 years, hopeful signs for the struggling economy.

U.S. employers posted the most job openings in four years in June, a positive sign that hiring may pick up. The Labor Department said Tuesday job openings rose to a seasonally adjusted 3.8 million in June, up from 3.7 million in May. That's the most since July 2008. Layoffs fell. The data follow Friday's report that said employers in July added the most jobs in five months. A rise in openings could signal better hiring in the coming months. It typically takes one to three months to fill a job.

Mitt Romney said the July report showing an 8.3% jobless rate is a 'hammer blow' to the middle class. The U.S. economy added 163,000 jobs in July, according to a government report released today, but the unemployment rate rose to 8.3%.

U.S. employers in July hired the most workers in five months, but an increase in the jobless rate to 8.3 percent could keep prospects of further monetary stimulus from the Federal Reserve on the table.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits rose less than expected last week, but the data continues to be influenced by distortions from seasonal auto shutdowns.

The Federal Reserve’s policy-making committee took no new steps to support the economy at a meeting that ended Wednesday, although the committee signaled in a statement that it was ready to take new action if job growth does not improve.

As slow as the recovery in jobs has been, a few states are doing quite well. Seven have more jobs now than before the recession. Some - Texas, North Dakota and Alaska - are benefiting from an oil boom... The other states that have regained all their lost jobs are: New York, Oklahoma, Louisiana, and South Dakota. New York has seen broad-based gains in education and health care, financial services,and other professional services such as legal services and accounting.

Factory activity in the U.S. Mid-Atlantic region in July contracted for a third straight month and the number of Americans filing new claims for jobless aid surged last week, heightening worries about the economy's health.

President Barack Obama blasted Mitt Romney's economic plan during a stop in the pivotal swing state of Ohio on Monday, saying the blueprint will create 800,000 jobs — just not in America. "Today, we found out, there's a new study out by a non-partisan economist that says Governor Romney's economic plan would in fact create 800,000 jobs," Obama said at a town hall-style event in Cincinnati. "There's only one problem. The jobs wouldn't be in America."

Since the recession ended in June 2009, men have gained 80% of the 2.6 million net jobs created in the U.S., including 61% in the last year. Even as women have moved up the economic ladder and outpaced men in earnings growth over the last decade, they are lagging behind in a crucial area — getting new jobs.