The decline in new jobs last month marked a much weaker performance than many analysts were expecting. The 86,000 drop was the largest since November 1991, when payrolls plummeted by 94,000. Some sectors of the economy lost jobs, some gained, but overall, there was a loss of 86,000 jobs. The report comes days before Bush sends his full budget plan to Congress that will include a 5 percent cut to the Labor Department's budget. Since last June, lost factory jobs totaled 451,000.
Many analysts think manufacturing already is in a recession.
They have worries the weakness is spreading and will break the nation's record-long stretch of uninterrupted growth, which started its 11th year in March. The new numbers ''clearly give warning that there are still some tough times to go before the economy is out of danger,'' said Joel Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors. Seeking to prevent the economy from toppling into recession, the Federal Reserve has cut interest rates three times this year, totaling 1.5 percentage points. Economists said Friday's report raises the odds that the Fed might lower interest rates again before the next scheduled meeting on May 15. The length of the average workweek edged up to 34.3 hours from 34.2 hours in February.