The U.S. economy produced several hundred thousand more jobs than previously thought in 2011 and 2012 even as the nation's jobless rate remained stuck at a relatively high level, new data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics show.

While BLS said the unemployment rate ticked up to 7.9 percent in January from 7.8 percent the month before, it also reported that:

— Revisions based on data from unemployment insurance tax records indicate there were 422,000 more jobs on public and private payrolls in the spring of 2012 than initially thought.

— In December 2012 alone, public and private employers increased their payrolls by 196,000 jobs, an upward revision from the agency's initial estimate of 155,000.

— And in November, employers' payrolls expanded by 247,000 jobs. That's well above the previous estimate of 161,000.

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