US job creation tumbles in March; unemployment steady at 4.1%

Monthly job creation in the worlds largest economy tumbled in March to its lowest level in six months, with employers adding only 103,000 net new positions, the government reported today.

The result was less than a third of the payroll gains in February and far lower than the 175,000 analysts expected.

But the US unemployment rate held steady at 4.1 per cent for the sixth month in a row and as wages rose faster than expected.