WASHINGTON — U.S. employers added 162,000 jobs in July, the fewest since March. The gains were enough to lower the unemployment rate to a 4½ -year low of 7.4 percent, a good sign in an otherwise lackluster report.

The Labor Department said today that unemployment fell from 7.6 percent in June.

Still, the economy created 26,000 fewer jobs in May and June than previously estimated.

Americans worked fewer hours in July, and their pay dipped. The figures suggest weak economic growth may be making businesses cautious about hiring.

Reaction to the jobs report on financial markets was slightly negative. Stock index futures gave up early gains and were little changed shortly after the report came out. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note fell to 2.64 percent from 2.71 percent.

The Federal Reserve will pay particularly close attention to the July employment data as it decides whether to scale back its $85 billion a month in bond purchases later this year. Weaker hiring could make the Fed hold off on tapering at its September meeting. Economists noted that the drop in unemployment, along with solid hiring gains over the past year, could be enough to convince the Fed that the job market has made significant gains.

The economy has created 200,000 jobs a month since January. However, the pace has slowed in the past three months to 175,000 jobs. The government said employers added 176,000 jobs in May, below the 195,000 estimated. Job gains in June were 188,000, down from the 195,000 reported last month.