August 1998 — 1998-09-30

In August, 227 metropolitan areas recorded unemployment rates below the U.S. average (4.5 percent, not seasonally adjusted), while 94 areas had higher rates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Of the 25 metropolitan areas with rates of 2.0 percent or below, 15 were located in the Midwest and 6 were in the South. Eight of the nine areas with jobless rates above 10.0 percent were in California or along the Mexican border in other states. Unemployment rates were below 3.5 percent in 135 metropolitan areas in August, while rates of 6.5 percent or higher were reported in 35 areas. The lowest jobless rates were recorded in Rochester, Minn., and Sioux Falls, S.D. (1.2 percent each), Fargo-Moorhead, N.D.-Minn. (1.3 percent), and Madison, Wis. (1.4 percent). The highest rates were in Yuma, Ariz. (36.4 percent), where summer jobless rates are roughly double the winter rates each year, and McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Tex. (17.5 percent).