US stocks plunged Thursday after worse-than-expected monthly jobless figures suggested the country’s worst recession since the 1930s is still going strong. The dismal trading session capped a shortened week on Wall Street. US markets will be closed Friday ahead of US Independence Day celebrations July 4.

The US economy shed 467,000 jobs in June, and the jobless rate climbed to 9.5%, its highest level since 1983, the US Labour Department reported. Economists had predicted 365,000 jobs would be lost, hoping June would mirror a dramatic improvement in May. President Barack Obama called it a “sobering” sign that the country’s deep recession is not over.

“While there are continuing signs that the recession is slowing, obviously this is little comfort to all those Americans who have lost their jobs,” Obama said in Washington. The US economy has now lost 6.5 million jobs since a deep recession began in December 2007, the worst 18-month stretch since 1939.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled 223.32 points, or 2.63%, to 8,280.74. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slumped 26.91 points, or 2.91%, to 896.42. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index plummeted 49.2 points, or 2.67%, to 1,796.52. The US currency rose against the euro to 71.43 euro cents from 70.67 euro cents on Wednesday. The dollar fell against the Japanese currency to 95.91 yen from 96.64 yen.

A court-appointed trustee unraveling Bernard Madoff’s massive fraud so far has allotted $231 million from a securities industry fund that compensates victims — a record amount for the fund, but a mere fraction of what was lost.

In a statement Wednesday, Trustee Irving Picard said to date he has processed 543 claims brought by Madoff’s burned clients, and concluded they are owed nearly $3 billion. But only $231 million can be covered through the Securities Investors Protection Corp. or SIPC, which is authorized by Congress to guarantee brokerage accounts for a maximum $500,000.

Still, Picard said the payout was noteworthy because it far exceeds totals paid by SIPC in past securities fraud cases. The figures were announced on the eve of a deadline for Madoff victims to file claims with Picard under the supervision of a Manhattan bankruptcy judge. The trustee has so far received more than 10,000 claims.

Madoff, 71, was sentenced earlier this week to 150 years in prison for orchestrating a multibillion Ponzi scheme that spanned decades and spun a web of phantom wealth. The epic swindle, which wiped out life savings and entire charities, turned Madoff into a national pariah.

Thousands of investors with Madoff’s once-respected advisory firm believed their securities accounts were worth tens of billions of dollars. But investigators say the totals on the clients’ monthly account statements were fiction: In reality, Madoff never made investments, and instead used new investors’ money to pay returns to existing ones.

After Madoff’s arrest late year, Picard was appointed to try to recover any remaining business assets and divvy up those proceeds — along with SIPC funds — to victims. About $1.2 billion in assets have been identified so far.

The trustee has warned victims who file claims they are entitled only to the amount of money they put into Madoff’s fund — not what their statements showed. Picard has filed a series of lawsuits to try to reclaim what he says were tens of billions in phony profits earned by hedge fund managers and other big investors. The defendants, many longtime Madoff associates in the world of high finance, have denied any wrongdoing.

Victims also expect to benefit from a judge’s forfeiture order stripping Madoff of all his personal property. The order last week authorized the sale of a Manhattan co-op, homes on Long Island and Palm Beach, Florida, a yacht and other valuable property.

Sri Lanka on Thursday raised fuel prices by up to 11%, but the increases were still insufficient to recoup the entire cost of production. The higher grade 95 Octane gasoline was increased by 15 rupees to 148 rupees (1.3 dollars) a litre while diesel, commonly used for public transport was raised by 4.11% to 73.00 rupees (65 cents).

The new prices were put into effect in tandem by the state run Ceylon Petroleum Corporation and the Lanka Indian Oil Company (LIOC).

The LIOC controls one third of the oil retail pumps in the island. Officials said the government was still losing about 15 rupees a litre of oil while the LIOC had asked for a bigger increase which was turned down by the government.

Porsche said on Tuesday that a state-owned German development bank has rejected its application for euro1.75 billion ($2.46 billion) in credit, but that a Qatar investment fund has offered to buy a stake in the sports car maker. Porsche Automobil Holding SE said the KfW bank had rejected the application. The bank told the company it could make a new bid “at any time,” but Porsche said in a statement that it “will not take it up on this offer.”

“After this decision, Porsche will hold talks on alternative financing possibilities,” it added. It did not elaborate. Stuttgart-based Porsche is trying to alleviate debt it ran up as it increased its stake in larger German auto maker Volkswagen AG, in which it now holds a 51 percent stake. It submitted its bid for KfW credit earlier in June.

Porsche also confirmed on Tuesday that Qatar’s state investment fund has made an offer to take a stake in the sports car maker. ”We have an offer from the Qatar Investment Authority that describes taking a stake in Porsche Holding SE and the purchase of VW stock options,” said spokesman Albrecht Bamler. He refused to give any further details.

On Monday, Porsche rejected Volkswagen’s bid to take a 49 percent stake in the sports carmaker, saying it was “not a viable option.” Porsche shares were up 1.4 percent at euro47.80 in midday Frankfurt trading. Volkswagen shares were down 2.2 percent at euro248.99.

The Walt Disney Co and Hong Kong’s government have reached a deal to expand the territory’s Disneyland theme park at a cost of about $465  million, officials announced today. The deal, in the works over the last two years, is part of an effort to boost the fortunes of the theme park after it failed to attract as many visitors as hoped after its opening in 2005.

The park, a joint venture between Walt Disney and the Hong Kong government, will get three new theme areas, as well as 30 new attractions. “The expansion will be a catalyst to the park’s long-term development and bring benefits to not just the local tourism industry but also the entire economy,” Rita Lau, Hong Kong’s commerce and economic development secretary, told reporters.

Under terms of the deal, the Burbank, California-based entertainment giant will contribute all the necessary new capital for construction as well as sustaining the park’s operation during the building phases.

It will also convert into equity about $350 million in loans to the venture to help with funding and will keep open a credit facility of about $40 million. Hong Kong, which shouldered much of the $3.5 billion original construction cost, will not add any new capital, the government said.