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NEW YORK — The Dow Jones industrial average halved its loss for the week after the Labor Department said employers cut fewer workers last month. However, the report also showed that the ranks of the unemployed swelled to 9.7 percent, the highest level since June 1983.
The employment report found that employers cut 216,000 jobs last month, fewer than the 276,000 lost in July and better than the 225,000 figure analysts had been expecting. Traders said it was an encouraging sign that the labor market could be righting itself.
“The overall picture is things are getting better,” said Ryan Larson, senior equity trader at Voyageur Asset Management.