Graphic shows the national unemployment rate WASHINGTON (AP) - The American job market isn't just growing. It's accelerating. Employers added 236,000 jobs in February and drove down the unemployment rate to 7.7 percent, its lowest level in more than four years. The gains signal that companies are confident enough in the economy to intensify hiring even in the face of tax increases and government spending cuts. Last month capped a fourth-month hiring spree in which employers have added an average of 205,000 jobs a month. The hiring has been fueled by steady improvement in housing, auto sales, manufacturing and corporate profits, along with record-low borrowing rates. Before the spree, employers added an average of 154,000 jobs from July through October and only 108,000 from April through June. "The recovery is gathering momentum," Paul Ashworth, an economist at Capital Economics, said in a note to clients. The gains could boost consumer spending, adding momentum to the U.S. recovery and helping troubled economies in Europe and Asia. The U.S. economy is forecast to grow a modest 2 percent this year. Growth will likely be held back by uncertainty about the federal budget, higher Social Security taxes and across-the-board government spending cuts that kicked in March 1. And unemployment remains high nearly four years after the end of the Great Recession. Roughly 12 million people remain out of work. The unemployment rate declined in February from 7.9 percent in January mostly because more people found work. The last time unemployment was lower was December 2008, when it was 7.3 percent. The number of jobs gained is derived from a separate survey of employers. Hiring would be rising even faster if governments weren't shrinking their workforces, as they have been for nearly four years. Some $44 billion in spending cuts kicked in last week after Congress failed to reach a budget deal. The cuts are expected to shave about a half-point from economic growth this year and lower total hiring by about 30,000 jobs a month from April through September, according to Moody's Analytics. And most workers have had to absorb higher Social Security taxes this year. Stock prices rose after the report was released and strengthened later in the day. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 67 points to 14,397, its fourth straight record close. Robust auto sales and a steady housing recovery are spurring more hiring, which will trigger more consumer spending and could lead to stronger economic growth. The construction industry added 48,000 jobs in February; it's added 151,000 since September. Among industry categories, the biggest job growth in February was in professional and business services, which added 73,000. This category includes higher-paying jobs in accounting, engineering and information technology as well as temporary positions that typically pay less. Retailers added 24,000 jobs. The economy is generating more higher-paying jobs. That trend is raising average pay, which will help offset the hit that Americans took from higher Social Security taxes and gas prices. Hotel chain Cambria Suites expects business travel to rise 5 percent this year and next. Cambria, a unit of Choice Hotels International, is building nearly 20 hotels around the country, doubling its total. It plans to add 110 jobs this year and 400 next year to its workforce of 600. "The extent to which the U.S. is recovering and potentially the labor market is improving is potentially an important dynamic that Europe would welcome," said Nick Matthews, an economist at Nomura in London. And the vast generation of baby boomers has begun to retire; the oldest are now 67. The pickup in hiring hasn't yet benefited the long-term unemployed. Nearly 4.8 million Americans have been out of work for six months or longer, nearly 100,000 more than in January. But if the economy can continue to add 200,000 or more jobs a month, it means that many more people will have disposable income to spend. The year-over-year increase in home prices in January was the biggest in six years. Follow Chris Rugaber at http://Twitter.com/ChrisRugaber