Job Loss Number Less Than Expected

The U.S. economy lost a less-than-expected 539,000 jobs in April and unemployment jumped to 8.9%, according to the Labor Department.

The surprisingly low nonfarm payroll employment loss number, which came in well under the consensus economist expectation of 600,000, could give investors confidence that recovery from the recession that began in December 2007 is already underway. Stocks had rallied Wednesday after payroll processor ADP estimated April job loss at 492,000.

Still, the Bureau of Labor Statistics also upwardly revised job loss figures for February and March. The economy lost 681,000 jobs in February, up from an earlier reported 651,000 and it shed 699,000 jobs in March, up from 663,000. ...