Economy adds 428K jobs in April, unemployment holds at 3.6 percent

The U.S. economy added 428,000 jobs and the jobless rate held even at 3.6 percent, according to data released Friday by the Labor Department.

The April jobs report showed job growth holding strong in April as the unemployment rate remained just 0.1 percentage points above its level in February 2020. Economists expected the U.S. to have added roughly 300,000 jobs, according to consensus estimates, while bringing the jobless rate back down to pre-pandemic lows.