The US Labor Department reports that 112,000 jobs were created last month. 76,000 of these jobs were in the retail sector. Economists are disappointed because they hoped there would be more jobs created, given how the rest of the economy is doing.
Economist Steven Wood (Insight Economics) says: "This is the weakest job creation rate relative to economic growth on record." The news led to a slip in dollar and stock futures. Labor also corrected its report of 1,000 new jobs in Dec to 16,000.
Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve governor, predicts the employment outlook will improve. Interest rates will stay low until a job market revival is seen. January's report is being used by those who say Bush helps the rich and hurts the middle class.
