The Labor Department says companies added a net total 67,000 new jobs last month, down from July's upwardly revised total of 107,000. Wall Street analysts expected a smaller gain, according to Thomson Reuters.
Overall, the economy lost 54,000 jobs as 114,000 temporary census positions came to an end. State and local governments shed 10,000 positions. The jobless rate rose to 9.6 percent from 9.5 percent in July.
67,000 new jobs exceeded expectations and the likelihood of a double-dip has diminished. Of course we're not out of this yet, and it will take a long time, but businesses are hiring and we're now at eight consecutive months of private sector jobs added.