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U.S. unemployment surged by the most in over two decades. The jobless rate spiking to 5.5 percent up from 5 percent - economists were expecting a jobless rate of 5.1. It was also the fifth straight month that US employers cut jobs. Economists say that the unemployment rate was triggered by an increase of young workers looking for jobs, but that it is still an indication of a languishing economy. Art Hogan, Chief Market Strategist for Jefferies and Co SOUNDBITE: Art Hogan, Chief Market Strategist, Jefferies & Co., saying: (English) "Unemployment rates spiked to 5 and a half percent, a number we haven't seen since 2004, but I think you'll see that's probably a historical norm and we're probably halfway through a recession whether it's the technical definition of one or not." Sectors hardest hit were professional services - that saw a loss of 39,000 jobs -- construction - a decline of 34,000, and manufacturing - losing 26,000 jobs. The surprise in jobless data out from the Labor Department revived fears of a recession, and it gave fright to investors causing them to dash out of equities - the Dow giving back Thursday's gains in morning trade. Diane King, Reuters, New York.