Unemployment at highest level in 25 years

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the national unemployment rate climbed to 8.5 percent from 8.1 percent in February, its highest levels in a quarter-century, as employers raced to cut their payroll costs. It was the 15th consecutive month of job losses.

The monthly losses and rise in unemployment rate lined up with economists’ expectations.

The agency also drastically revised the job losses in January to 741,000 from the earlier report of 655,000, but left February’s job loss estimate of 651,000 unchanged.

“We’re closing in on 25 million people that are underemployed in one way or another,” said Mark Zandi, founder and chief economist of Moody’s Economy.com. “It highlights the incredible breadth of the downturn.”