Unemployment Rate Is on the Rise

Employers in the U.S. hired fewer workers in November and the unemployment rate rose to a 16-month high, reflecting a loss of confidence in the economic expansion, economists said before a report this week. The economy created 75,000 jobs, less than half October's 166,000 gain, according to the median forecast in a Bloomberg News survey of economists before the Labor Department's December 7 report. The jobless rate rose to 4.8 percent from 4.7 percent, based on the survey. Companies are curbing expenses as the economy is forecast to nearly stall this quarter under the weight of the worsening housing slump.