US jobless nears 16m despite end of recession

Published on Friday 6 November 2009 21:20

THE unemployment rate in the United States has hit double digits for the first time since 1983 – and is likely to go higher.

The 10.2 per cent jobless rate for October shows how weak the economy remains, even though it is growing. Rising unemployment could threaten the recovery if it saps consumers' confidence and makes them more cautious about spending as the holiday season approaches.

Nearly 16 million Americans can't find jobs, even though the worst recession since the Great Depression of the Thirties has apparently ended.

The unemployed rate jumped from 9.8 per cent in September, the labour department said yesterday. The economy shed a net total of 190,000 jobs, more than economists had expected.

The number of unemployed hit 15.7 million, up from 15.1 million. The job losses occurred across most industries, from manufacturing and construction to retail and financial. The job-loss total is based on a survey of businesses, separate from a survey of households that produces the unemployment rate.

Economists say the unemployment rate could reach 10.5 per cent next year, because employers remain reluctant to hire.

President Barack Obama called the new jobs report another illustration of why much more work is needed to spur business creation and consumer spending. Noting legislation he is signing to provide additional unemployment benefits for laid-off workers, Obama said: "I will not rest until all Americans who want work can find work."

Yesterday's report is the first since the government said last week that the economy grew at a 3.5 per cent annual rate in the July-September quarter, the strongest signal yet that the economy is rebounding.

However, that isn't fast enough to spur rapid hiring.