WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. economy created 598,000 fewer jobs in the 12 months through March than previously estimated, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) said on Friday.

The final nonfarm payrolls benchmark revision was less than the 818,000 reduction the BLS estimated in August. The numbers are not seasonally adjusted.

Economists had expected the level of employment over the 12-month period would be reduced by about 668,000 jobs following updates to the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages data for the first quarter from which the BLS based the payrolls benchmark revision.