U.S. jobless rate plunges to 6.3 %

The United States’ unemployment rate fell to 6.3 per cent in April as payrolls expanded at the fastest pace in more than two years, the Bureau of Labour Statistics reported.

The joblessness based on a survey of households, dropped 0.4 percentage points from March to the lowest rate since September 2008, in the midst of the 2007 to 2009 recession.

A separate government survey of employers found that payrolls grew by 288,000 last month, the largest addition since January 2012.

The labour report reinforces perceptions that first-quarter economic growth at an annualized rate of 0.1 per cent was due to severe winter weather and other temporary factors.

Agency Reports