Springfield metro area's unemployment rate drops

Along with its peers in the state, the Springfield metropolitan statistical area's unemployment rate was down in December, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

During December, the Springfield MSA – which comprises Greene, Christian, Webster, Polk and Dallas counties – had a jobless rate of 1.9%, a reduction from 2.1% in November, according to a news release. The data is not seasonally adjusted.

According to the BLS, Missouri's metro areas, by December unemployment rate, are:
• Columbia, 1.7%, down from 1.8% in November;
• Jefferson City, 1.9%, down from 2%;
• Springfield, 1.9%, down from 2.1%.
• St. Joseph, 2%, down from 2.1%;
• Joplin, 2.1%, down from 2.2%;
• Cape Girardeau, 2.2%, down from 2.3%;
• Kansas City, 2.4%, down from 2.5%; and
• St. Louis, 2.5%, down from 2.7%.

Missouri's December unemployment rate was 2.3%, down from 2.4% in November, according to the release.

Compared with a year earlier, December unemployment rates were lower in 244 of the 389 metro areas measured by the BLS nationwide, higher in 115 and unchanged in 30. The Springfield metro area's December 2021 unemployment rate was 2.7%.