STEPHEN FRAZIER, CNN ANCHOR: New government figures released just about 90 minutes ago add to the evidence of an economic slowdown. The nation's unemployment rate climbed to 4.2 percent in January, the highest level in 16 months. It's an increase of two tenths of a percentage point from the previous month, of December, which makes it the biggest one month jump in almost two years' time. Let's take a closer look at the numbers and the overall economic equation by turning to CNN financial news reporter Fred Katayama, in Washington. Fred, good morning.</s>FRED KATAYAMA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Stephen. Well, the nation's economy added a lot of jobs in January despite all those headlines about layoffs. Jobs outside the farm sector expanded by 268,000 in January; that is more than triple what Wall Street had been anticipating. Meanwhile, average hourly earning were unchanged in January, at $14.02. Now, look behind those job creation figures. Construction sector and the postal services sector accounted for the bulk of that net job creation. The construction companies added 145,000 workers in January, the reason: unseasonably severe weather in November and December led to layoffs in that sector, but January proved to be very mild -- like today, I'm not even wearing a coat. Well, that meant that construction companies were loathe to lay off workers in January, especially those that were doing outside jobs, such as roofing and masonry. However, having said that, the manufacturing sector lost 65,000 jobs in that month, led by weakness in the auto sector. A lot of automakers cut back production in order to cut back inventory and thereby cut costs. Having said that, take these January numbers with a bit of caution; a lot of seasonal factor come into play in January, such as weather, and that tends to exaggerate any job gains or job losses. I'm Fred Katayama, reporting live from the Labor Department, in Washington. Stephen, back to you.</s>FRAZIER: Fred, thank you.
Unemployment Climbs to 4.2 Percent, While Nonfarm Jobs More Than Triple Expectations