U.S. employment increased by 559,000 in May, unemployment rate fell to 5.8%

The U.S. Department of Labor said today that the U.S. added 559,000 new jobs in May and the unemployment rate fell to 5.8 percent as the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine helped businesses reopen and recruit.

AFP reported that the U.S. added fewer jobs than expected last month, but the monthly report showed that the U.S. economy is recovering from the massive layoffs caused by the epidemic, with the number of long-term unemployed falling by 431,000, but still as high as 3.8 million.

The report said the U.S. economy is still 7.6 million jobs short compared with the peak in February 2020.