U.S. gains 157,000 jobs

The unemployment rate rose to 7.9% from 7.8% in December, mostly because some unemployed Americans gave up the search for work because of weak job prospects.

This above statement is untrue. The people who have given up on looking for work are no longer counted. If they were counted then the unenployment rate would be much higher. Obama order this change to diguise his failed recovery efforts.

I wonder how many of these jobs created were in the Private sector and how many were created by the Obama sector

To the economy, it doesn't matter whether the jobs are in the private or public sector. Their salaries all spend the same and all contribute to economic growth. No administration, Republican or Democrat, counts people who are not searching for work as unemployed. Whether they should or not is a different question and I believe they should.

And 169,000 dropped off the radar. The Employment Participation Rate has continued its decline as people exhaust the 99 week unemployment "insurance" limit and are no longer counted in the "official " unemployment figures.

warnerbroFeb. 03, 2013 - 06:20PM JST

To the economy, it doesn't matter whether the jobs are in the private or public sector. Their salaries all spend the same and all contribute to economic growth.

Big difference, public sector jobs don't cause growth that can't be gained from the private sector, and actually erase private sector jobs since money that could be used to buy something that hires someone is instead used to pay an extra salary.

I do not know much about economics. However, if one compares the information that is being published at the moment on the state of world economy it is a little bit reassuring at least to see that the economy of the United States appears to be picking up albeit very, very, very slowly. More than 150,000jobs were created in the United states last month which is a sign that the world's largest economy is on the mend somehow. Likewise, the United States Labour Department said that 127,000 more jobs were created in November and December than previously thought. I have read all the preceding comments in this forum and different people seem to be using different criteria to assess te state of the American and world economies. Having said that, a common pattern is emerging, I think. In view of the data above and although the unemployment rate in the United States rose slightly to 7.9%-- not a very significant figure-- it should be enough to give us all some reassurance the American economy is no longer heading for a recession. This fact combined with a kinder treatment of the markets towards the euro since the European Central Bank voiced a clear commitment to save its currency whatever the costs, and the euro-area manufacturers reporting an overall performance in January in nearly a year is lending itself to some hope. The United Kingdom is the most important economy outside the euro-area and its economy benefited last month-- despite the pound tanking against the euro and the dollar-- from a surge of factory output in January helping to avert a most feared triple deep recession. Of course, anything can happen between now and the end of the year, meantime we should breath with some relief as we were told things would be much gloomier by now.

JSAB, the first mistake is to accept US official figures as accurate. Just the official unemployment rate alone is highly inaccurate due to the calculation trickery. And what are these "new jobs " being touted? You can find the more truthful breakdown with a little googling. A rosy picture is being painted, but it's an illusion.

The UK has slipped into a triple-dip as well.