WASHINGTON — The nation's unemployment rate inched up to a 20-month high of 4.3 percent in March as businesses cut the most jobs in a decade — signs that churned fresh recession anxiety for Wall Street and the Bush administration.

        The government's latest snapshot of employment Friday underscored how the weakened economy is taking its toll on the labor market.

        On Wall Street, the report sent stocks lower after one of the biggest surges in recent years just a day earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was off 126.96 at 9791.09 Friday. Thursday, the Dow soared 403.

        “We're on the edge of recession,” said Stuart Hoffman, chief economist with PNC Financial Services. He said of the unemployment figures: “This is not conclusive proof that we've fallen over the edge. It is a reminder of how close we are.”

        The jobless rate rose 0.1 percentage point from February, the Labor Department reported. The rate last stood at 4.3 percent in June and July of 1999.

        Payrolls plunged by 86,000 last month — the first decline since August 2000 when 79,000 jobs were cut. Manufacturers continued to hemorrhage, and losses also were posted at temporary employment services and in retail at bars and restaurants, department stores and car dealers.

        The decline in total payrolls followed a 140,000 gain in February, according to revised figures.

        Manufacturing, which has been bearing the brunt of the slowdown, lost 81,000 jobs last month, with cuts in a range of industries — from auto manufacturing to electronic components.

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