Springfield metro area’s unemployment rate rises at start of ’24

In line with other parts of Missouri, the Springfield metropolitan statistical area’s unemployment rate rose in January, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of labor Statistics.

The Springfield MSA – which comprises Greene, Christian, Dallas, Polk and Webster counties – had a January unemployment rate of 3.2%, according to a news release. That compares with 2.3% in December.

The state’s metro areas, by January unemployment rate, are:

• St. Louis, 3.8%, up from 3.1%.
• Joplin, 3.6%, up from 2.9%.
• St. Joseph, 3.6%, up from 2.5%.
• Cape Girardeau, 3.5%, up from 2.6%.
• Jefferson City, 3.3%, up from 2.3%.
• Kansas City, 3.3%, up from 2.5%.
• Springfield, 3.2%, up from 2.3%.
• Columbia, 3%, up from 2.1%.

Missouri’s January unemployment rate was 3.8%, up from 2.9% in November, according to the release. The data is not seasonally adjusted.

Compared with a year prior, January’s unemployment rates were higher in 218 of the 389 metro areas measured nationwide by the BLS, lower in 148 and unchanged in 23. The Springfield MSA’s January 2023 unemployment rate was 2.4%.