WASHINGTON - Private employers added 71,000 jobs in July, up from a revised 31,000 in June but below the consensus forecast of 90,000. The unemployment rate stayed steady at 9.5 percent.

Overall, the nation lost 131,000 jobs in July, more than expected, but many of those losses came as federal Census Bureau workers left their temporary posts. The government also sharply revised the overall June number, saying the economy lost 221,000 jobs instead of 125,000.

Figures released last week confirmed that the United States economy slowed down in the spring, and the Department of Labor’s monthly statistical snapshot of hiring pointed toward a stall in hiring this summer, as employers failed to add jobs at the rate they were earlier this year.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau