The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that the United States unemployment rate fell by 0.2 percentage points in January, the third straight month of decline. The rate now stands 8.3 percent and is 0.8 percentage points lower than it was in January 2011.
The percentage of the population participating in the labor force in January was at 63.7 percent, down three percentage points from the previous month, but the percent of the population holding jobs held steady at 58.5 percent.
The payroll employment numbers showed a net job increase of 243,000 jobs in January. This is the second straight month of plus 200,000 net private sector jobs being added to the economy, even while the number of jobs in government has been shrinking.
Manufacturing showed strong growth, adding 50,000 jobs in January. The motor vehicles and parts industry added almost eight thousand positions to its payroll.
Employment in construction increased by 21,000 in January. This followed a gain of 31,000 jobs in construction in December.
In January, average hourly earnings in private sector jobs rose by 0.2 percent to $23.29. Over the past year average hourly earnings have increased by almost 2 percent.
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