The national unemployment rate dropped from 6.3% to 6.2% between January and February, with a net increase of 379,000 jobs. The latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that unemployment rates fell in 23 states and Washington, DC. They increased by 0.4 percentage points in Connecticut, 0.2 percentage points in Delaware and North Dakota, and 0.1 percentage points in Texas — with the remaining 23 states remaining stable. Meanwhile, 11 states added jobs, while three — Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Missouri — reported employment declines of 0.7%, 0.6%, and 0.4%, respectively.
As of February, only South Dakota and Kansas were back to their unemployment rates from a year before, while Nebraska, Montana, and Ohio remain less than half a percentage point away. Compared to January, Hawaii showed the largest improvement in the unemployment rate, which fell from 10.3% to 9.2%. Massachusetts, California, and Michigan also reported declines of half a percentage point or more.
