The economy may be getting better after all. The U.S. economy lost 539,000 jobs in April, causing employment rates to jump to 8.9 percent, up from 8.5 percent in March. While it may seem worse, these unemployment numbers are better than expected: economists had predicted 620,000 job losses in April. This report indicates that employers are no longer as desperate to lay off staff, that the economy is indeed recovering (albeit slowly) and that the job market will be the last to recover. Said one research analyst of the report: "It's a confirmation that we're in the early stage of a turn."