Unemployment | featured news

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke makes clear in a letter to a House lawmaker that he thinks the Fed can do more to bolster the economic recovery and help reduce unemployment.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits unexpectedly rose last week while US manufacturing improved only slightly in August, worrisome signs for an economy struggling to create enough jobs.

The state's labor market showed continued resilience in July as California employers added 25,200 nonfarm jobs in July, continuing a 12-month streak of job gains. With that figure, the state posted the largest month-over-month increase in the country, but the unemployment rate was unchanged at 10.7%, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Consumer prices were flat in July for a second straight month and the year-over-year increase was the smallest in more than 1-1/2 years, giving the Federal Reserve room for further monetary easing to tackle stubbornly high unemployment.

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.

U.S. auto sales remained soft in July and all three Detroit automakers reported sales for the month that fell slightly short of analyst estimates, as high U.S. unemployment and weak consumer confidence kept would-be buyers on the sidelines.

Growth at or below 2% isn't enough to lower the unemployment rate. The U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of just 1.5 percent from April through June, as Americans cut back sharply on spending. The slowdown in growth adds to worries that the economy could be stalling three years after the recession ended.

The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week to near a four-year low but an unusual pattern for summer factory shutdowns kept hopes in check that the weak labor market was improving.

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.

The number of Americans signing up for new jobless benefits last week fell to a four-year low but an unusual pattern for summer factory shutdowns marred what would have been a hopeful sign for the struggling labor market.