Payrolls in U.S. Probably Increased in March as Demand Picked Up

Payrolls probably increased in March and the U.S. jobless rate held at a four-year low as demand improved at the start of the year, economists said before a report today.

Employers hired a net 190,000 workers last month after taking on 236,000 in February, according to the median forecast of 87 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The jobless rate held at 7.7 percent, the lowest since December 2008, the survey indicated. Separate data may show the trade deficit was little changed in February.