January 22, 2008 (The Editor’s Desk is updated each business day.)

States with lowest unemployment rates in December 2007

In December 2007, Idaho and South Dakota posted the lowest jobless rates among the States, 3.0 percent each.

Percent of labor force unemployed, selected States, December 2007
[Chart data—TXT]

Overall, 17 states registered unemployment rates in December that were significantly below the U.S. rate of 5.0 percent, 8 states and the District of Columbia recorded measurably higher rates, and 25 states had rates that were statistically little different from that of the nation.

These data come from the BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics program and are seasonally adjusted. More State unemployment statistics are available in "Regional and State Employment and Unemployment: December 2007" (PDF) (HTML), news release USDL 08-0067.