ALBANY — For a second consecutive month, the Capital Region’s labor market contracted in July, according to statistics released Thursday by the state Department of Labor.

During what is traditionally one of the region’s peak employment months, the local nonfarm work force ended July with 446,700 jobs, down 600, or 0.1 percent, from a year earlier. Last month’s job losses kicked the region’s unemployment rate to 5 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from June. In July 2007, that rate was 4.1 percent.

Battered by high gasoline prices and poor weather, area restaurateurs and hoteliers continued to hold off on hiring during their busiest season. The accommodations and food services sector over the year shed 1,900 jobs, ending July with 27,600.

Also reflecting how high gas and food prices are crimping consumer spending, the retail trade sector over the year shrunk by 700 jobs to 48,900.

Partially offsetting July’s losses, the local labor market received an 800-job boost over the year from the state government. The professional, scientific and technical services sector continued to become a larger player in the labor market, growing over the year by 1,600 jobs to 30,000. Educational and health services also added 1,600 jobs during that period, totaling 78,500.

In the coming months, the state government will likely become a smaller key player in propping up the region’s labor market because of the state worker hiring freeze Gov. David Paterson announced late last month. In July, the state had 53,200 jobs regionwide, unchanged from June.

“The idea is the state numbers will go down,” said Labor Department market analyst James Ross.

Ross said it is hard to tell how much July’s wet weather affected hiring. During peak building season, the natural resources, mining and construction sector last month reported 20,000 jobs, unchanged from a year earlier.

Although the rain last month was incessant, it was not as bad as a year earlier. At Albany International Airport in Colonie, 6.94 inches of rain fell last month, compared with 7.03 inches a year earlier. There were 13 days with measurable rain last month, compared with 14 in July 2007, according to the National Weather Service.