Despite loss of jobs, Maryland’s October unemployment rate lowest in the nation

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Maryland had the lowest jobless rate in the country in October, 1.7%, according to figures released Friday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

That was a slight increase from the previous month, when Maryland had a 1.6% jobless rate, also the lowest in the nation.

Unlike in September, when revised numbers now show that Maryland gained 17,000 jobs, the state in October showed a decline of 11,100 jobs.

State Department of Labor officials said that sectors experiencing a decline include: professional and business services (3,100); the public sector (2,800); mining, logging, and construction (1,700); private education and health (1,700); leisure and hospitality (1,300); and manufacturing (1,100).

Nationally, the next lowest rate for October was in North Dakota, 1.9%, while Nevada had the highest unemployment rate, 5.4%, the BLS said.

In October, 26 states had over-the-month unemployment rate increases, all of which were 0.2 percentage point or 0.1 point. Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia had jobless rates that were not notably different from those of a month earlier.

Twenty-one states had over-the-year unemployment rate decreases, the largest of which was in Maryland (-1.5 percentage points). Twelve states and the District of Columbia had rate increases from October 2022, the largest of which was in New Jersey (+1.3 percentage points). Seventeen states had jobless rates that were not notably different from those of a year earlier.

The BLS monthly data release precedes the publication of state numbers, so Maryland Department of Labor breakdowns for October are not yet available.