LESTER HOLT, anchor:
Before the
stock market
opened this morning, as we told you, we got the job numbers for July. There were -- there's a lot riding on them and they came in better than expected. Employers added 117,000 jobs to their payrolls, and the unemployment rate ticked down to 1/10th of a point to 9.1 percent.
NBC
's
John Yang
has more on what these numbers are telling us tonight.
JOHN YANG reporting:
In
Washington
,
President Obama
celebrated the strongest jobs report in four months, but he also acknowledged the more than 20 million Americans who can't find full-time jobs.
President BARACK OBAMA:
We are going to get through this. Things will get better, and we're going to get there together.
YANG:
Analysts say getting there could take time. Today's report paints a picture of a jobs market with no clear direction or momentum.
Ms. JULIA CORONADO (BNP Paribas Chief Economist):
We just move forward in fits and starts. One minute we get a good, strong patch going, and then something brings us down.
YANG:
Among July's bright spots, retailers who added 26,000 jobs as foreign tourists are drawn by the cheap dollar. And manufacturing again showed strength, creating 24,000 new jobs for a total of 289,000 new hires since
December 2009
, when the recession was hitting hardest.
In Chicago
,
Midland Metal Products
, a 90-year-old maker of store displays, is hiring again. The company's currently in the market for experienced machine operators, but fourth generation owner
Suzanne McDonald
says she's having a
hard time
finding them.
Ms. SUZANNE McDONALD:
We right now are running ads in three newspapers and on
Craigslist
. We've had very few applications or resumes.
YANG:
Brian Kurzanowski
was hired in April after an eight-month
job search
, even though he's still in college.
Mr. BRIAN KURZANOWSKI:
They're looking for -- they're looking for someone right away, and I happened to be there when they needed me, so they hired me right away.
YANG:
But for every new worker, like
Kurzanowski
, there are many more still looking for work. Analysts say their numbers could increase as troubles in the financial industry point to looming layoffs.
Ms. CORONADO:
It's the toughest jobs recovery in the post-war period, without a doubt.
YANG:
And there are no signs that it's likely to get any better any time soon.
John Yang
, NBC News, New
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