The highly anticipated employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics sent mixed signals Friday. While the unemployment rate fell to 9% from 9.4%, hiring disappointed, with nonfarm payrolls adding only 36,000 workers in January. Several analysts said specific factors such as inclement weather and a greater proportion of discouraged workers were largely responsible for the month?s changes, and that labor markets still face an arduous uphill battle to recover the more than 8 million jobs lost during the recession.
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