Hiring Slowdown In April May Signal Caution About US Economy

WASHINGTON (AP) -- American employers signaled their caution about a sluggish economy by slowing their pace of hiring in April after months of robust job growth.

At the same time, companies raised pay, and their employees worked more hours - a combination that lifted income and, if sustained, could quicken the U.S. expansion.

As a whole, the government's report Friday pointed to an American job market that continues to generate steady hiring, though at a rate that may be starting to slow. Employers added 160,000 jobs in April, well below the average gain of 243,000 in the prior six months. But the unemployment rate remained a low 5 percent, roughly where it's been since last fall.

"Employment was never going to continue rising at more than 200,000 a month indefinitely," said Paul Ashworth, an economist at Capital Economics, a consulting firm. "Those monthly gains are simply unsustainable" at a time of tepid economic growth.

Over the past six months, the economy has expanded at an annual pace of just 1 percent. Anecdotal evidence suggests that some employers have become concerned that sluggish growth could weaken customer demand and limit the need for more employees.

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