Regional And State Employment And Unemployment: February 2004 — 2004-03-31

Regional and state unemployment rates were generally little changed in February. All four regions and 43 states plus the District of Columbia re- corded shifts of 0.3 percentage point or less in their unemployment rates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported to- day. Over the year, unemployment rates declined in all regions and in 45 states and the District of Columbia. The national jobless rate, 5.6 percent in February, was unchanged from January. Nonfarm payroll employment decreased in 27 states in February. The South again had the lowest unemployment rate among the four regions in February, 5.1 percent. The West continued to report the highest rate, 5.9 percent. All four regions registered declines in their unemployment rates from February 2003, ranging from -0.3 percentage point in the Midwest to -0.6 point each in the South and West.