April 1999 — 1999-06-02

In April, 215 metropolitan areas recorded unemployment rates below the U.S. average (4.1 percent, not seasonally adjusted), while 102 areas had higher rates, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Of the 24 metropolitan areas with jobless rates below 2.0 percent, 13 were in the Midwest and 9 were in the South. Of the 10 areas with rates above 10.0 percent, 7 were in California and 2 were along the Mexican border in other states. Unemployment rates below 3.0 percent were recorded in 108 metropolitan areas in April; rates above 6.0 percent were registered in 32 areas. The lowest jobless rates were in Charlottesville, Va. (0.9 percent), and Columbia, Mo. (1.0 percent). The highest rates were in Yuma, Ariz. (21.0 percent), and Visalia-Tulare-Porterville, Calif. (19.6 percent). (See table 1 and the chart.) Over the year, unemployment rates declined in 228 metropolitan areas, increased in 78, and were unchanged in 23.