County jobless rates fall statewide

The drop came a month after the state recorded an unprecedented drop in unemployment in every county.

"The positive news in the April county data is that there has been an increase in the number of workers employed throughout the state,” ESC Chairman Lynn Holmes said in a statement. “At the same time, the news is tempered by the fact that more than half of the counties still have unemployment rates over the unadjusted rate of 10 percent.”

The number of workers employed statewide increased by 30,780 in April, to 4,089,754. The number of people unemployed dropped by 42,446, to 455,013.

Sixty-three counties have double-digit unemployment, but that figure was 75 counties in March. The statewide unemployment rate was 10.8 percent in April.

Wilson County was the only county statewide that didn't see its unemployment rate drop in April, as the rate inched up to 12.2 percent from 12.1 percent.

Unemployment in Wake County dropped from 8.6 to 8 percent, while Durham County's rate went from 8 to 7.4 percent. Cumberland County's rate dropped from 9.2 to 8.6 percent, and Johnston County's went from 10.2 to 9.2 percent.

Orange County, which often has the state's lowest unemployment rate, fell from 6.4 to 5.9 percent. But Currituck County reported the state's lowest unemployment rate in April, at 5.8 percent. Scotland County had the highest rate, at 15.8 percent.

For metro areas, the jobless rate in Raleigh-Cary dropped from 8.9 to 8.3 percent, while Durham-Chapel Hill went from 7.8 to 7.2 percent. Fayetteville's rate went from 9.1percent to 8.6 percent, Rocky Mount's from 13.6 to 13 percent and Goldsboro's from 9.2 to 8.6 percent.