By Mark Wineka
Salisbury Post
Rowan County’s unemployment rate dropped slightly in December, according to the Employment Security Commission.
The Rowan jobless rate was 5.9 percent in December 2007, down from 6 percent in November. Out of a December labor force of 70,673 in Rowan, the state said 4,180 were receiving unemployment insurance benefits.
The state’s overall unemployment rate for December was 4.7 percent.
Here are the December jobless rates in the counties touching Rowan:
– Cabarrus, 4.3 percent, the same as November.
– Davidson, 5.3 percent, no change.
– Davie, 4.6 percent, down from 5.1 percent.
– Iredell, 4.7 percent, up from 4.6 percent.
– Stanly, 5.1 percent, up from 4.9 percent.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, unemployment rates were higher in December than a year earlier in 277 of the 369 metropolitan areas.
Eight metropolitan areas, seven of which are located in California, recorded jobless rates of at least 10 percent. Twenty-two metro areas registered rates below 3 percent. The Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord area had a 4.8 percent overall rate.
The national unemployment rate in December also was 4.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted, up from 4.3 percent a year earlier, according to U.S. economist Steven Rondone.