The US economy managed to generate 163,000 jobs last month. It is said to be the fastest pace since February and a clear sign that the economy is resilient enough to improve from a midyear slump and grow at a modest rate as the rest of the world slows down.
The 163,000 jobs added in July ended the three months of weak hiring in the US. But the gains weren’t enough to improve the unemployment rate, which is up to 8.3 percent last month from 8.2 percent in June. It is the 42nd straight month that the unemployment rate was up 8 percent. The United States is experiencing its weakest economic recovery since World War II.
The Labor Department released the jobs report Friday and it provided fodder for both President Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney. The president sees it as an improvement in hiring in the private sector while Romney focuses on the higher unemployment rate.
In recent American history, no president faced re-election when the unemployment rate was high. President Jimmy Carter failed with his re-election bid in November 1980 when the unemployment was 7.5 percent.
President Obama said that the private sector added 4.5 million jobs in the past 29 months. He said that there are still too many people out of work and the government has a lot of work to do on their behalf. Romney highlighted the increase in the unemployment rate. He said that the middle class Americans deserve better and he believes America can do better.
The US economy is struggling three years after the Great Recession ended in June 2009. The housing market collapse and the financial crisis destroyed trillions of dollars in household wealth and stopped home construction.
