Employment in the United States took an unexpected jump in February, the first gain since July and the largest in a year.

The Labor Department reported that 66,000 more people got jobs during the month, dropping the unemployment rate to 5.5%. Goods-producing industries dropped 31,000 jobs in February compared to an average of 151,000 over the previous three months.
“This February drop was fully offset by an increase in the length of the workweek,” says Newport Communications Senior Economist Jim Haughey. “On top of this add a probable strong gain in productivity. Productivity gained 5.2% in the previous quarter. The result is a 0.3 to 0.5% rise in the quantity of goods produced and needing to be shipped. Next add rising imports and possibly even rising exports. Freight volume in February probably posted the biggest gain since the economic slowdown began,” he says.
The best news in February report, says Haughey, was the 14,000 new jobs in "Help Supply Services."
“The number of temporary contract workers had declined 655,000 over the long downturn. Even 14,000 more temps means that some employers, mostly manufacturing and construction, are scrambling to meet sudden rises in orders.”
News of a better unemployment rate follows comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan this week that an economic recovery "is already well under way."