Employers added 162,000 jobs in July, adding to worries that the labor market may finally be wobbling a bit amid federal spending cuts and a payroll tax increase.
The unemployment rate fell to 7.4% from 7.6%, the Labor Department said Friday.
A consensus forecast of economists had estimated that 185,000 jobs were added last month.
Hopes for stronger-than-expected employment gains grew after reports Thursday showed that initial jobless claims fell sharply last week and payroll processor ADP estimated that the private sector added 200,000 jobs in July.
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