Manufacturing, Jobs | featured news

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.

It’s hard to think of an extravagant prediction that hasn’t been made about America’s recent natural-gas boom. Let’s see: Cheap natural gas will wipe out coal. It will make the U.S. energy independent. And, oh yes, it will create one million manufacturing jobs and revitalize the Midwest.

Amid signs that the overall jobs climate was improving, manufacturing stands out as an area of surprising strength.

DEARBORN, Mich. (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. said Tuesday it will add 5,750 jobs and invest $4.8 billion in its U.S. factories as part of a new contract deal with the United Auto Workers union....

Job growth in the U.S. and signs of global manufacturing expansion sent stocks sharply higher Wednesday. Bond prices and the dollar fell as investors moved money into riskier assets.

GE said it will open a manufacturing-technology center in Michigan that will eventually employ more than 1,100 workers.