Job growth kicked back into gear in April, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Friday, as the economy added 211,000 new jobs and the unemployment rate ticked down to 4.4 percent, the lowest such rate since May of 2007.

The growth in payrolls easily beat forecasters' expectations, which were for job creation to recover to around 185,000 after last month's disappointing 98,000 number, which was revised down to 79,000 on Friday.

Friday's report indicates that the underlying trend remains strong, likely to provide a boost to President Trump and affirm the Federal Reserve in its plans for raising interest rates and tightening monetary policy this year.

"I think it's a strong employment number," said Bryce Doty, senior portfolio manager at Sit Investment Associates, saying that Friday's report will "cement" the Fed's decision to raise rates again in June.

Only about 50,000 to 100,000 jobs are needed each month to prevent unemployment from rising. Over the past three months, monthly jobs growth has averaged 174,000, including revisions.

With unemployment already below what Fed officials have estimated represents a fully healthy economy, economists would expect wage growth to accelerate.

The household survey in Friday's report, however, showed hourly earnings growth slowing from 2.7 percent annually to 2.5 percent. While disappointing, slow wage growth, taken together with continued robust job growth, could be a good sign in that it suggests that there were even more workers sidelined by the recession willing to work than the Fed has thought all along, and that the U.S. can create many more jobs without seeing inflation rising above the Fed's target.

Friday's report hinted that there does indeed remain deep labor supply. At 62.9 percent in April, the labor force participation rate has held steady since late 2013, defying the ongoing demographic trends pushing down on labor force participation.

Since the start of the recession, workforce participation has plummeted, reflecting two factors: The retirement of the Baby Boom generation and other demographic changes, and the fact that the downturn forced many people to simply quit the job hunt and fall out of the bureau's calculation of the unemployed. In the past several years, though, it appears as though the cyclical part of the decline has reversed itself to some extent as better job prospects have enticed more people into the job search, propping up labor force participation.

Other details from Friday's report represented encouraging news. The broadest measure of underemployment, the "U6" unemployment rate, fell in April to 8.6 percent, a rate not seen since November of 2007, the month before the recession officially began. The U6 rate includes people forced into part-time work and people only sporadically looking for work as well as the unemployed. "When you combine all those together, it's a pretty impressive number," said Doty.

Another bright spot in April's jobs news was that the retail industry added 6,300. In recent months the sector has been hemorrhaging jobs, and is still down 75,000 on the year.

Job growth at restaurants and bars also continues to be a source of job creation. Those jobs grew by 26,000 in the month, and have increased by 260,000 in the past year.

So far this year, monthly job growth has averaged 185,000, nearly the same as the 187,000 average for 2016, President Obama's last full year in office.

Republicans, were glad to trumpet Friday's news. "This report shows our economy is making progress, and I'm confident we will accelerate this progress as we continue working with President Trump on our pro-growth agenda," said Kevin Brady, the chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.