Unemployment rate rises to 8.9 percent

The nation’s unemployment rate jumped to 8.9 percent in April, but fewer job losses were reported last month than in March.

The total number of unemployed people grew to 13.7 million, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, which reported large and widespread job losses across nearly all major private-sector industries. The number of unemployed increased by 563,000.

{mosads}Overall, the number of the unemployed has grown by 6 million over the last 12 months, with the rate jumping 3.9 percent.

Still, while the unemployment rate is the highest it has been since 1983, April’s job losses fell under the 600,000 bar, and were fewer than expected by some economists.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke voiced optimism about the economy earlier this week, and said the Fed does not expect the unemployment rate to rise into double digits. At a Tuesday hearing of the Joint Economic Committee, Bernanke said the Fed expects unemployment to top out above 9 percent this year.