Metropolitan Area Employment And Unemployment: February 2004 — 2004-04-09

In February, 266 metropolitan areas recorded lower unemployment rates than a year earlier, 48 areas had higher rates, and 17 areas had rates that were unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Seven metropolitan areas posted unemployment rates below 3.0 percent, with five of these located in the South and the other two in the Midwest. Thirteen areas had jobless rates of at least 10.0 percent; nine of these were located in California and three were along the Mexican border in other states. The national unemployment rate was 6.0 percent, not seasonally adjusted, in February. Sixty-six metropolitan areas reported jobless rates of at least 7.0 per- cent, down from 85 areas in February 2003, while 58 areas recorded rates below 4.0 percent in February, up from 36 areas a year earlier.