According to the BLS’ latest “Metropolitan Area Employment and Unemployment” report, joblessness dropped within 328 of the United States’ 372 metro areas from June 2011 to June 2012. During that same time span, 268 areas also recorded year-to-year increases in nonfarm payroll employment, the highest monthly total of 2012. The BLS also revealed that unemployment rose on a year-ago basis in 32 areas, but remained unchanged in 12. In addition, 65 areas recorded jobless rates of 10 percent or higher in June, while 94 areas’ rates were below seven percent.
Unsurprisingly, joblessness remained well above the national average in two Western cities, El Centro, Calif., and Yuma, Ariz. El Centro’s unemployment rate of 28.2 percent was 20 percent above the national average, while Yuma’s jobless rate was measured at 27.9 percent, 1.1 percent higher than it was in May. However, as is generally the case, Bismarck, N.D., and Fargo, N.D.-Minn.’s unemployment rates were more than 50 percent lower than the national jobless rate, at 2.5 and three percent, respectively.
Furthermore, the BLS recently published the following statistics concerning regional employment and inflation, which were documented throughout the month of June.
Source: BLS
- Mid–Atlantic: Camden, N.J.’s unemployment rate rose considerably from May to June, increasing from 9.6 to 10.6 percent, the largest month-to-month increase of 2012. In all, 71,800 residents were without work, the highest monthly total recorded this year. (Link)
- Midwest: Dayton, Ohio’s jobless rate remained below the national average in June, at 7.8 percent, as 31,800 residents were unemployed. Although joblessness rose from May to June by 0.5 percent, the rate has generally declined since January, when it was measured at 8.9 percent. (Link)
- Mountain-Plains: For the first month since March, Topeka, Kan.’s unemployment rate augmented on a month-to-month basis, rising from seven percent in May to 7.3 percent in June. 289,100 residents were employed in June, an upswing of nearly 7,000, when compared to January’s data. (Link)
- New England: The greater Burlington, Vt., area’s unemployment rate rose sharply from May to June, from 3.5 to 4.4 percent, respectively, as hiring remained low in sectors such as state and local governments, finance, and information. (Link)
- New York–New Jersey: From June 2011 to June 2012, the greater New York City area’s Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) and Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W) each rose by 1.6 percent. (Link)
- Southeast: Employment within the greater Orlando, Fla., area’s leisure and hospitality and finance sectors increased by four and 1.9 percent, respectively, from June 2011 to June 2012, as 99,300 citizens remained unemployed. (Link)
- Southwest: Albuquerque, N.M.’s jobless rate rose on a month-to-month basis for the second straight month in June, increasing from 6.7 to 7.4 percent. 29,500 residents were without work, an increase of 2,800 in comparison to May’s statistics. (Link)
- West: Hiring continued to uptick within a majority of the greater Portland, Ore., area’s sectors in June, particularly the leisure and hospitality and manufacturing industries. Within those two industries alone, employment rose by 2.4 and five percent, respectively, from June 2011 to June 2012. (Link)
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