Unemployment fell to 4.6 percent last month in the Capital Region, down a full percentage point from 5.6 percent last March, according to preliminary figures released today by the state Department of Labor
The region maintained the state’s second-lowest unemployment rate last month, lower even than the downstate metros just north of New York City. The Ivy League metro of Ithaca held onto its No. 1 spot with unemployment at 3.8 percent.
On a county-by-county basis, the Capital Region boasted three of the state’s lowest unemployment rates.
Albany County tied with Nassau County for the state’s second-lowest rate at 4.3 percent, down 1 point from 5.3 percent one year earlier.
Saratoga County tied with Putnam County for the third-lowest rate at 4.4 percent, down 0.9 percent from 5.3 percent one year earlier.
Schenectady County tied with Orange County for the sixth-lowest rate in the state at 4.8 percent, down 1.1 percent from 5.9 percent one year earlier.
Elsewhere in the region: Rensselaer County unemployment fell 1.1 percent from 6 percent to 4.9 percent. Schoharie County unemployment fell 1.4 percent from 8 percent to 6.6 percent.
On the western edge of the Capital Region metro, unemployment fell by more than a point in Fulton and Montgomery counties. Fulton County unemployment fell 1.5 percent from 8.9 percent last March to 7.4 percent this March. Montgomery County unemployment fell 1.3 percent from 8.8 percent to 7.5 percent.
Reach Gazette reporter Bethany Bump at 395-3107, [email protected] or @BethanyBump on Twitter.
