New Hampshire, the Granite State, posted the lowest unemployment rate among all states in May at 2.5%, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Next lowest jobless rates were in Nebraska and Vermont at 2.6% each.
The state with the highest jobless rate in May was Hawaii at 8.1%, though it was among the states with the largest decreases in unemployment rates. The states with the second- and third-highest jobless rates in May were New Mexico at 8.0% and California at 7.9%.
States with the largest month-over-month decrease in unemployment rates in May were Delaware and Rhode Island, falling 0.5 of a percentage point each. They were followed by Connecticut, Hawaii, New York and South Carolina, each of which fell 0.4 of a percentage point.