U.S. economy adds 379,000 jobs in February, beating expectations

People walk past a plastic covered section outside an eating area at a restaurant in Washington, DC on February 14, 2021.
(Image credit: DANIEL SLIM/AFP via Getty Images)

The latest U.S. jobs report is in, and it significantly surpassed expectations.

The Labor Department said Friday the U.S. economy added 379,000 jobs in February, while the unemployment rate declined slightly to 6.2 percent. This was above the 210,000 jobs economists were expecting, CNBC reports.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
Explore More
Brendan Morrow

Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.