Tagged: Economic Numbers

The nation's jobless rate edged down to 8.1 percent in April from 8.2 percent in March, but just 115,000 jobs were added to private and public payrolls, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports.

The job growth was well below expectations and has raised new questions about the strength of the U.S. economy.

We'll add more to this post as we read through the report and gather reactions and analysis. So be sure to hit your "refresh" button to get our latest updates.

The Labor Department announced unemployment figures for April on Friday. The jobless rate fell to 8.1 percent, from 8.2 percent in March. There have been conflicting signals about the strength of the economy, and the way voters interpret those signals could have a major impact on the presidential race.

There were 365,000 first-time claims for unemployment insurance filed last week, down 27,000 from the week before, the Employment and Training Administration reports.