clipped from: www.ft.com   

US companies cut nearly a half million jobs last month as the recession continued to cut into the labour market in spite of other recent signs of hope in the economy.

Private companies cut 473,000 jobs from their payrolls in June, according to a survey by ADP employer services on Wednesday.

Employment in the goods-producing sector was hit the hardest, where 250,000 jobs were shed. Manufacturers, which have shed workers for 40 months in a row, culled 146,000 jobs in June, and construction employment fell by 97,000 as builders continue to cut back. In the services sector 223,00 jobs were lost.

June for the fifth straight month and were down 9 per cent compared with the same month a year ago. However, persistent high levels of jobless claims and Tuesday’s Conference Board report showing a drop in consumer confidence continue to darken optimism for a fast recovery.
Economists expect that the US shed another 363,000 workers in June, pushing the unemployment rate to 9.6 per cent.