Unemployment rates declined last month in more than half of the 372 largest U.S. cities, further evidence of steady improvement in the job market. The Labor Department says rates fell in 201 metro areas. They rose in 116 and were unchanged in 55.
Unemployment rates fell in 43 states in November, reflecting a modest pickup in the nation's job market. Nationally, the unemployment rate dropped in November to 8.6%, the lowest since March 2009.
New government data shows that the U.S. added just 54,000 new jobs in May, far less than what economists were expecting. The news, which sent the jobless rate up to 9.1%, sent stocks lower on Wall Street.
A slight slip in the price of oil allowed Japanese investors to focus attention on positive employment figures out of the U.S., boosting the Nikkei 225 Index by 0.9%. In Hong Kong the Hang Seng also Index added 0.3%, while the Shanghai Composite Index edged down 0.4%.
Microsoft may start laying off more workers as early as tomorrow.
Some of Thursday's best online stories for investors: Is the Gulf disaster spilling into Obama's approval ratings? Is Apple (AAPL) really selling three iPads a second? And could tomorrow's employment report be the best since 1983?
