In an exception to the general pattern of losses during the past year, the manufacturing sector of the U.S. economy added 19,000 jobs in April, bringing employment in the sector to 14.25 million, the U.S. Labor Department reported on May 5.
Employment gains among automakers, computer and electronic products manufacturers, and producers of fabricated metals more than offset employment declines among primary metal producers, makers of paper products, and textile producers, the department said.
The overall non-farm portion of the U.S. economy, of which manufacturing is a part, also added jobs last monthalthough not as many as economists generally expected. Non-Farm jobs increased by 138,000, the Labor Department said; most analysts expected at least 170,000 jobs to be created in Aprilmany anticipated job growth near 200,000, in line with gains in February and March.
The U.S. unemployment rate remained at 4.7% in April.
