Foreign Investment Lifts U.S. Job Market

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Associated Press

NEW YORK _ Made-in-Japan and Made-in-Germany labels once made U.S. workers fear for their jobs. Now the jobs themselves are made overseas _ and Americans are grateful.

While scores of U.S. corporations are slashing payrolls, companies such as Mercedes, BMW and Toshiba are creating thousands of jobs in this country by opening new factories and expanding existing ones. Foreign investment here has surged this year, reversing a three-year decline.

The trend, some economists say, could give a small but timely boost to the fragile U.S. recovery, which has been undermined by widespread layoffs as companies struggle to pare …