January 1999 — 1999-03-04

Regional and state unemployment rates were stable in January. All four regions reported little change over the month, and 45 states and the District of Columbia recorded shifts of 0.3 percentage point or less, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. The national jobless rate remained at 4.3 percent. Nonfarm payroll employment rose in 31 states. At the regional level, the Midwest recorded the lowest unemployment rate in January, 3.4 percent, while the West once again had the highest rate, 5.1 percent. The Midwest and South, whose jobless rates edged down from December, recorded the lowest rates in their series. (Virtually all regional and state series begin in 1978.) Over the year, rates declined in all regions, with the Northeast experiencing the largest decrease, -0.7 percentage point.