New England’s jobless rate was among the lowest among U.S. regions in June, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said Thursday.
New England’s unemployment rate in June fell to 4.8 percent, down from 5.9 percent a year ago.
That was better than all but two of the nine geographic divisions tracked by BLS.
At 4.3 percent, West North Central had the lowest jobless rate. That division includes Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota. Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas — which comprise the West South Central division — had a 4.6 percent jobless rate.
Officials reported several weeks ago that Connecticut’s unemployment rate had fallen to 5.7 percent, down from 6.5 percent a year prior.
Rhode Island posted New England’s biggest drop over the year, from 7.7 percent to 5.9 percent.