U.S. Economy Sheds 17,000 Jobs

U.S. Economy Sheds 17,000 Jobs

The economy lost 17,000 jobs in January, the Labor Department reported on Friday, the first decline in four years and the most striking evidence yet that the United States may be slipping into a recession.

Jobs disappeared across a broad spectrum of professions, with the steepest losses coming in the manufacturing, construction and goods-producing industries.

The unemployment rate, after jumping to 5 percent in December, fell back slightly, to 4.9 percent.

"This is the clearest signal yet that the job market is either in or teetering on a recession," said Jared Bernstein, senior economist at the liberal Economic Policy Institute in Washington.

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