The New York Times > Business > The Overview: In Blow to Bush, Only 32,000 Jobs Created in July: "In Blow to Bush, Only 32,000 Jobs Created in July
By DAVID LEONHARDT

Published: August 7, 2004


ob growth ground nearly to a halt last month, the Labor Department reported yesterday, raising new concerns about the economy's strength and reshaping the political debate over its performance less than three months before election day.
Employers added just 32,000 jobs in July, a small fraction of what forecasters had expected and far below the robust gains in employment earlier this year. The government also announced that job growth in May and June was less than initially estimated."