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Date: Friday 02 May 2008

LONDON (ShareCast) - US non-farm payrolls fell by a smaller amount than expected in April, while the unemployment rate unexpectedly headed lower.

Non-farm payroll employment fell just 20,000 in April, substantially below the average monthly loss of 80,000 seen in the first three months of the year and the 78,000 to 85,000 decline expected by economists.

The number of people unemployed was little changed in April at 7.6m, down 0.19m, while the unemployment rate edged down to 5.0% from 5.1% in March; economists had expected a small rise in the unemployment rate.

Employment continued to decline in construction, manufacturing and the retail trade but employment levels picked up in healthcare, and in technical and professional services.

Employment levels in the construction industry tumbled 61,000 in April, reflecting the continued slump in the US housing market. Since September 2006 the construction industry in the US has shed 457,000 jobs.

The dollar perked up markedly on the release of the data, improcing by more than a cent against the euro, which fell to its lowest level versus the greenback since 24 March.