US loses 20,000 jobs, unemployment eases to 9.7%

US employers cut 20,000 jobs in January, while the unemployment rate eased to 9.7 percent, the US Department of Labor reported today.

The report fell short of expectations for a gain of 15,000 jobs that would have been a clear sign of a turnaround in the troubled US labor market and overall economy.

The apparent contradictory moves in the unemployment rate and payrolls reflect the two separate surveys used by the Labor Department, one for households and the other for companies.

Additionally, the number of "discouraged" workers who are not counted as unemployed but not looking for work, also rose in January.

The figures also come following a revision of 2009 data, which showed about 600,00 more job losses than previously estimated.

For December, the data was revised to show a steep drop of 150,000 jobs instead of 85,000 previously estimated. But November data was revised to show a gain of 64,000 jobs instead of a rise of 4,000.