The unemployment rate in the U.S. unexpectedly climbed to 9.1 percent in May and payrolls grew at the slowest pace in eight months, showing employers are losing confidence as the economy slows.
The jobless rate increased to the highest level this year from 9 percent a month earlier, Labor Department figures showed yesterday in Washington. Employers added a less-than-projected 54,000 jobs last month, after a revised 232,000 gain in April that was smaller than initially estimated. The median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey called for payrolls to rise 165,000.
