Unemployment rate falls below 4 percent for first time since 2000 — but for a bad reason

WASHINGTON - The U.S. labor market improved somewhat last month, adding a solid 164,000 net jobs while the unemployment rate reached a new milestone, falling below 4 percent for the first time since 2000, the Labor Department said Friday.

But while job growth rebounded from a disappointing March figure that was revised up Friday to 135,000, other aspects of the closely watched monthly report were lackluster. And the drop in the unemployment rate was for a bad reason: The labor force shrank