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US payrolls in October grow by 166,000

Sunday, 4 November 2007


WASHINGTON, Nov 3 (AP): Employers added twice as many new jobs to their ranks than expected in October, an encouraging sign that the nation's employment climate is not cracking under the stress of a deepening housing slump.
The Labour Department reported Friday that the nation's payrolls grew by a net 166,000, the most in five months. The unemployment rate didn't budge at 4.7 per cent, a figure considered low by historical standards.
Job gains were logged at schools, hospitals, bars and restaurants, hotels and motels, temporary-help firms, legal services, accounting and book keeping companies, the government and other places.
Those hiring increases more than offset jobs losses at factories, construction companies and mortgage businesses - casualties of the meltdowns in the housing and credit markets. Retailers and trucking companies also shed jobs.