His remarks at a window manufacturer came as the US unemployment rate dropped 0.4 points to 9.4% in December, the largest one-month drop since 1998.

Some 103,000 jobs were created last month, the Labor Department said, although this was fewer than forecast.

But Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke warned employment could remain depressed for four to five more years.

The lower unemployment rate, while cheering, came not only because more people found jobs, but also because 260,000 had given up looking and ceased being counted as unemployed.