A Solid B+: Economy 'Unexpectedly' Sheds 85,000 Jobs

How's that change working out? Oh, sorry. I shouldn't use the word working. Naturally all this was "unexpected" by the experts.

U.S. employers unexpectedly cut 85,000 jobs in December, government data showed on Friday, cooling optimism on the labor market's recovery and keeping pressure on President Barack Obama.

The Labor Department said November payrolls were revised to show the economy actually added 4,000 jobs in that month rather than losing 11,000 as initially reported. With revisions to October, however, the economy lost 1,000 more jobs than previously estimated over the two months.

The unemployment rate was unchanged at 10 percent in December.

Analysts polled by Reuters had expected nonfarm payrolls to be unchanged last month and the unemployment rate to edge up to 10.1 percent.

High unemployment is one of the toughest domestic challenges facing Obama. The administration's success in getting people back to work will shape prospects for Obama's own political future.

Unemployment remains the Achilles heel of the economic recovery that started in the third quarter of 2009 following the worst recession in 70 years. Creating jobs is critical to sustaining the economic recovery when government stimulus fades.

For the whole of 2009, the economy shed 4.2 million jobs, the department said.

That's 4.2 million jobs not saved or created. Still, Reuters desperately tries to prop up Obama.

Still the job market continued to show broad improvements last month, with a number of sectors showing gains.

Broad improvements that resulted in the loss of 85,000 jobs?

Say what?

Oh, the media has such hopes.

A U.S. government report on Friday is expected to show the economy stopped shedding jobs last month for the first time since it fell into recession two years ago, easing a political weight on President Barack Obama.

A Reuters survey of 84 economists on Thursday forecast nonfarm payrolls would be flat in December after dropping by 11,000 in November, far fewer than in previous months.

Sigh. The experts had it wrong again.

I'm sure by the end of the day this will be spun as a "victory" for Obama.