STATEMENT FROM COMMERCE SECRETARY
DONALD L. EVANS ON TODAY’S EMPLOYMENT REPORT

“Thanks to the President’s tax relief, the unemployment rate declined to a two-year low of 5.6 percent and American businesses created the strongest hiring in three years. The quickening pace of job creation shows that U.S. companies are increasingly unable to fulfill the accelerating demand for goods and services solely through increases in productivity. This trend points to additional job security for American workers and accelerated hiring in coming months.

“Rising factory activity, backlogged orders, low inventories, and growing capital spending show that expanding demand is pushing American businesses to hire new workers. President Bush won’t be satisfied until every American seeking work finds a job. Congress must act quickly on the President’s jobs agenda to remove obstructions and transform economic momentum into sustained job creation.”