US government figures show that the country's employers hired more workers in February than in any month since May last year, while the unemployment rate fell to a near two-year low.
The figures raise hopes that the US economic recovery has gathered critical momentum. Employment increased by 192,000, the Labor Department said, above market expectations for 185,000 jobs.
Data for December and January were revised to show 58,000 more jobs created than previously estimated.
The peak of monthly employment last May was when employment was being boosted by government hiring for a census. The unemployment rate dipped to 8.9%, the lowest since April 2009, from 9% in January as more people reported finding work.
February's bounce in employment after payrolls were depressed by extreme weather in January is unlikely to sway the Federal Reserve from its ultra-easy monetary policies.
The jobless rate has dropped 0.9 percentage point since November. The rate is derived from a survey of households, while the job creation figure comes from a separate survey of employers. The household survey showed more people were employed in February.
The unemployment rate is being closely watched by the Fed and could well determine the timing of the US central bank's first interest rate hike. The Fed, which meets on March 15, has held overnight lending rates near zero since December 2008.
Economists believe the Fed will want to see employment gains of more than 200,000 for at least six to nine months and a significant decline in unemployment before starting to withdraw its massive monetary support from the economy.
Private sector leads job creation
As in previous months, the private sector accounted for all the job gains in February, with an addition of 222,000 positions. That was up from 68,000 in January.
Employment in the private service sector, which pulled back in January, when much of the US was hit by heavy snowfall, showed solid growth in February, rising 152,000 from 33,000 jobs in January.
Payrolls in the goods-producing industries saw a weather-related bounce of 70,000, with construction increasing 33,000 after shedding 22,000 jobs in January. Manufacturing, a sector that is powering the recovery, added 33,000 jobs.
Government employment fell 30,000, contracting for a fourth straight month, pulled down by state and local governments, which are under heavy budgetary pressures.
Factory orders rise strongest since 2006
Separate figures showed that US factory orders surged in January at the strongest pace in more than four years, led by a sharp rise in aircraft orders.
The Commerce Department said orders in the manufacturing sector, which is driving the economy's recovery from recession, leapt 3.1% in January, widely topping expectations and accelerating from a 1.4% gain in December.
It was the biggest increase since September 2006, thanks to a 52% jump in orders for civilian aircraft and parts. Military aircraft orders rose 19%.
Excluding transport orders, which can be volatile on a monthly basis, factory orders rose for the sixth straight month but edged up only 0.7%, compared with a 3% increase in December.
The Commerce Department revised upward its reading on orders for durable goods - manufactured items expected to last three years - to 3.2%, from a 2.7% increase initially estimated last month.
Orders for non-durable goods, which represent roughly 55% of all manufacturing sector orders, rose 3.1% in January. Compared with a year ago, total factory orders were up 10.8% from January 2010.
