By Andrew L. Jaffee

More great news on the American job market:

The unemployment rate slipped to 4.7 percent from 4.8 percent, the Labor Department said, matching the low hit in January, which had been the lowest rate since July 2001.

Employer payrolls grew by 211,000 last month, down slightly from a revised gain of 225,000 in February, the department said. But that was above the average forecast of 190,000, according to a survey of economists by Briefing.com.

The U.S. economy has created 5 million new jobs since August 2003; gross domestic product grew 3.5 percent in 2005; worker productivity has increased at a 3.4% annual rate since 2001; manufacturing activity has increased for 33 consecutive months; inflation has remained at a tame 2.1% over the last year; personal income has grown 8.2% since 2001; and, the U.S. is at or near full employment (those looking for work are finding work).

American orders for durable goods jumped 2.6% in February, the fourth increase over the last five months. Durable goods are defined as products with a normal life expectancy of three years or more, like furniture, aircraft, computers, and automobiles.

Let’s hope all the good economic news doesn’t panic the Fed into raising interest rates too high and too fast. We seem to be in a sweat spot of sustainable growth with mild inflation. Perhaps Alan Greenspan’s successor Ben Bernanke will keep a cooler head.