Fed D-Day approaches as US jobs beat expectations again

US jobs growth accelerated again in February as the country added 295,000 new roles, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The figure is well ahead of analysts' predictions, consensus expectations having been for 235,000 jobs to be added. February's growth also represents another leg up on January's revised 239,000 figure, in spite of adverse weather conditions blighting much of the US. The unemployment rate also fell faster than expected, from 5.7% in January to 5.5% in February. Analysts had predicted a rate of 5.6%. These statistics will put added pressure on the Federal Reserve to consider hiking interest rates this year, a June hike having been eyed by many commentators for some months now. How...