US economy creates 175,000 jobs in February

Washington (AFP) - The US economy generated 175,000 jobs in February, data showed Friday, a modest rebound from two poor months when weakness was blamed on harsh winter weather.

The Labor Department also revised higher by 25,000 the number of net positions created in December and January, softening the picture of a sharp downturn in the US jobs market at the height of the winter.

The private sector hired a net 162,000 more people last month, while government at all levels boosted payrolls by 13,000.

The total number of unemployed Americans gained slightly in February at 10.5 million as more people returned to the market for jobs

That and the overall expansion of the labor force helped push the unemployment rate up a notch to 6.7 percent last month, the Labor Department said.