New Slideshow: US Unemployment Rate Falls to 7.7 Percent in February, Economy Adds 236,000 Jobs

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday that the U.S. unemployment rate fell to 7.7 percent. For the first time that puts it at a level below where it was when President Barack Obama was inaugurated. Once before, in November, the BLS had reported a rate of 7.7 percent, but that was later revised upward as part of a year-end rebenchmarking. The broad unemployment rate, U-6, also fell to its lowest level since 2008.

The economy added 246,000 payroll jobs in the month, for a net gain of 236,000, taking into account a decrease of 10,000 jobs in federal, state, and local government. The increase in payroll jobs was broadly based, with both goods-producing and service sectors contributing.

Not all the news was good, however. The number of people working part-time for economic reasons increased, as did the percentage of unemployed workers who had been out of a job for 27 weeks or more. Both indicators have been stubbornly high throughout the recovery.

Follow this link to view or download a classroom-ready slideshow with charts of all the latest jobs data.