US loses 63,000 jobs in February in sign of deeper woes

0 Comments | AFP, March, 2008

WASHINGTON (AFP) — US employers slashed payrolls by 63,000 jobs in February, the government said Friday in a sign of deeper woes for the world's biggest economy.

It was the second straight month of losses in nonfarm payrolls, seen as one of the best indicators of economic momentum. In January, revised data showed a loss of 22,000 positions, according to the Labor Department report.

February's loss was the biggest since March 2003, at the start of the war in Iraq, and a major disappointment for analysts expecting a gain of 25,000 jobs. For some, the report confirms the US is in recession.

"The payrolls report had recession written all over it," said Avery Shenfeld, senior economist at CIBC World Markets.

"It's nearly unheard of to see these numbers...