News Alert: Unemployment rate falls to 5.1 percent

View in Browser BREAKING NEWS Friday September 4, 2015 U.S. Economy Adds 173,000 Jobs; Unemployment Falls To 5.1 Percent Morning commuters and pedestrians cross a road at Gwanghwamun square in Seoul, South Korea, on Friday, Aug. 28, 2015. South Korea is scheduled to release second-quarter gross domestic product figures on Sept. 3. Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg via Getty Images Bloomberg via Getty Images U.S. job growth rose less than expected in August, which could dim prospects of a Federal Reserve interest rate hike later this month, even as the unemployment rate dropped to a near 7-1/2- year low of 5.1 percent and wages accelerated. Nonfarm payrolls increased 173,000 last month as the manufacturing sector lost the most jobs since July 2013, after an upwardly revised 245,000 rise in July, the Labor Department said on Friday. It was the smallest gain in employment in five months. Read More

Follow HuffPost on Facebook and Twitter:

Get Huffington Post on the Go