July 2001 — 2001-08-17

Regional and state unemployment rates were generally stable in July. All four regions registered little or no change from June, and 42 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 was unchanged at 4.5 percent. Nonfarm employment increased in 23 states in July. In July, the Midwest and Northeast regions registered the lowest unemployment rates, 4.2 percent each, while the West had the highest rate, 4.8 percent. The Midwest recorded the largest over-the-year jobless rate increase, 0.5 percentage point, slightly above the 0.4 point increase in both the Northeast and South. (See table 1.) Among the nine geographic divisions, the West North Central had the lowest unemployment rate, 3.5 percent in July, while New England reported the next lowest rate, 3.7 percent. The Pacific division once again posted the highest jobless rate, 5.1 percent.