The U.S. economy had a net gain of 244,000 jobs in April, the biggest increase in nearly a year, while the unemployment rate rose slightly to hit 9 percent.
Friday's report from the Labor Department showed most of the job gains were in private sector ((non-government)) jobs, including manufacturing.
The job gains are more than most economists predicted, but are still below the level needed to recover the 8 million jobs lost in the recession.
Economists say job growth needs to be 250,000 or higher each month to significantly cut the unemployment rate because the work force is growing due to births and immigration.