April 2000 — 2000-05-19

Regional and state unemployment rates were relatively stable in April. All four regions registered little change over the month, and 41 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 edged down to 3.9 percent. Nonfarm employment increased in 38 states in April. In April, the Midwest continued to record the lowest unemployment rate, 3.3 percent, while the West again had the highest rate, 4.4 percent. Over the year, rates declined in all regions, with the largest decreases occur- ring in the West, -0.7 percentage point, and the Northeast, -0.6 point. (See table 1.) Among the nine geographic divisions, the West North Central recorded the lowest jobless rate in April (2.6 percent), followed closely by New England (2.7 percent). At 4.8 percent, the Pacific division continued to register the highest rate.