LOC17:09
14:09 GMT
WASHINGTON, Sept 1 (KUNA) -- The US unemployment rate rose slightly from 4.3 percent in July to 4.4 percent in August, the Labor Department reported Friday.
Employers added 156,000 jobs last month, the report said.
US job growth in June and July was revised down by a combined 41,000, indicating an average monthly jobs gain this year of 176,000, the data showed.
Average hourly pay in the US rose only 2.5 percent over the 12 months that ended in August, the report said.
The US economy has grown at an annual pace of 2.1 percent in the first six months of 2017, the data showed.
With inflation low, US consumer spending in July rose at its fastest pace in three months, the report said.
The stock market is up 10 percent this year, and trends indicate that business investment is increasing.
August was the 83rd straight month of US job gains. (end)
rm.mt