The U.S. economy shed 651,000 jobs in February and the national unemployment rate rose to 8.1 percent, a 25-year high, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. Manufacturing lost 168,000 jobs, marking the 32nd straight month in which there have been no job increases. Within the manufacturing sectors, the majority of the decline was in durable goods industries (132,000), with the largest losses in fabricated metal products (28,000) and machinery (25,000); nondurable goods manufacturing lost 36,000 jobs. Other industries with losses included construction (104,000), financial services (44,000), truck transportation (33,000), and information (15,000).