February 2002 — 2002-04-03

In February, 266 metropolitan areas recorded higher unemployment rates than a year earlier, 40 areas had lower rates, and 16 areas had rates that were unchanged, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Thirteen metropolitan areas had jobless rates of at least 10.0 percent, eight of which were located in California's agricultural Central Valley. Sixteen areas posted unemployment rates below 3.0 percent, with nine located in the South and five in the Midwest. The national unemployment rate was 6.1 percent, not seasonally adjusted, in February. (Data for the nine metropolitan areas in Michigan were not available at the time of release.) Eighty-two metropolitan areas reported unemployment rates of at least 6.5 percent in February, up from 43 areas a year ago, while 35 areas had rates below 3.5 percent, down from 98 areas in February 2001.