US payroll figures boosted markets on Friday after companies added more jobs than expected, continuing the trend of positive news coming out of the world's biggest economy.
February's figure showed an increase of 227,000 jobs in the all important non-farm payrolls release, although overall the jobless rate held steady at 8.3%. The figure beat the 210,000 estimated by economists. Meanwhile the US Department of Labor also revised up the previous two months sharply. January's payroll climb was revised up from 243,000 to 284,000, while December's figure climbed from 203,000 to 284,000. Jobs growth in the US over the past six months has been at its strongest level since 2006, with 1.2 million jobs created. Increases in US jobs are helping fuel consumer ...
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