Unemployment Rate Ticks Up To 6.7%, Winter Weather Scapegoated Again

U.S. hiring improved modestly in February from the previous two months, though unemployment ticked up to 6.7 percent and real unemployment is 12.6 percent.

The Labor Department said Friday that employers added 175,000 jobs last month, which is up from just 129,000 in January, a number that was revised up from 113,000. December’s gain was also revised higher.

The unemployment rate rose to 6.7 percent from the five-year low of 6.6 percent. More Americans started looking for work but didn’t find jobs. That’s still an encouraging piece of data, because more job hunters suggest that ling0term jobless benefits were keeping people from participating in the labor market, an argument Republicans made during the debate over providing another extension.

To some economists, the numbers were a surprise, because they’ve been arguing that harsh weather had closed factories, lowered auto sales, and caused existing-home sales to plummet. the Obama administration is welcoming that message, citing the cold weather as a reason that the report was a welcomed piece of news. It is ironic, however, considering the administration has been ring the global warming bells.

“Over the past three months, payrolls growth has averaged 130,000, which is pretty respectable given the widespread weather disruptions,” tweeted University of Michigan economist Justin Wolfers.

The low temperatures and snow storms that hit the eastern half of the country in February might still have held back hiring. The number of Americans who said weather forced them to work part-time rather than full-time reached the highest level for February in the 36 years that the government has tracked the figure. The average work week fell.

Some recent reports hint that the economy will accelerate as the weather warms. The number of people who applied for unemployment benefits fell last week and is at about the same level as before the Great Recession.

Applications reflect layoffs, while the decline in the number of applications suggests that companies are optimistic about future growth. Layoffs would rise if employers expected business to weaken in the near or mid-term future. Instead, businesses advertised more jobs online last month, according to the Conference Board. Online job ads rose 268,100 in February to 5.19 million.

However, there are still many other factors of concern and are weighing on the economy. Auto makers and other manufacturers build up big stockpiles of goods in the second half of last year, which suggests they are likely producing fewer goods this year and that is corroborated by factory orders being down.

Most economists forecast the economy will grow at a 2 percent annual pace or less in the first three months of the year, revised down from a 2.4 percent pace in the final three months of 2013. Yet they expect growth to accelerate in the spring and summer to roughly a 3 percent pace.