WASHINGTON (AP) — American employers unexpectedly cut 92,000 jobs last month, a sign that the labor market remains under strain. The unemployment rate blipped up to 4.4%.

The Labor Department reported Friday that hiring deteriorated from January, when companies, nonprofits and government agencies added a healthy 126,000 jobs. Economists had expected 60,000 new jobs in February.

Revisions also cut 69,000 jobs from December and January payrolls.

The job market had been expected to rebound this year from a lackluster 2025 when the economy, buffeted by President Donald Trump’s erratic tariff policies and the lingering effects of high interest rates, generated just 15,000 jobs a month.

Construction companies cut 11,000 jobs last month, which likely reflects reflect frigid weather. And healthcare firms shed 28,000 jobs after a four-week strike by more than 30,000 nurses and other front-line workers at Kaiser Permanente in California and Hawaii.

The outlook for the job market – and the entire economy – is clouded by the war with Iran.

Employers were reluctant to hire last year because of uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s tariffs – and the unpredictable way he rolled them out.