By Glenn Somerville
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. unemployment rate hit its highest level in four years during July as employers cut jobs for a seventh straight month, though less severely than predicted, a Labor Department report showed on Friday.
The jobless rate climbed to 5.7 percent from 5.5 percent in June as 51,000 jobs were eliminated in July, bringing losses for the year to 463,000. Economists had expected 75,000 jobs would be cut last month but had forecast the unemployment rate would rise only to 5.6 percent.
In a separate report, the Institute for Supply Management said manufacturing activity held steady in July and noted some moderation in inflation pressures. Its index of national factory activity slipped a bit to 50 from 50.2 in June -- with 50 being the dividing line between expansion and contraction.
"If you look at ISM and the unemployment number together, it suggests an economy that is, at best, stuck in neutral," said Subodh Kumar, chief investment strategist with Subodh Kumar & Associates in Toronto.
The entire article can be found here: http://www.reuters.com/article/vcCandidateFeed2/idUSN3133083420080801
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