Nearly 90 percent of major U.S. cities had lower unemployment rates in December than the same month a year earlier, a reflection of stronger hiring nationwide.
The Labor Department said Wednesday that unemployment rates fell in 329 cities last year. They rose in 37 cities and were unchanged in seven.
The national unemployment rate fell in December to 8.5 percent — the lowest level in nearly three years. Employers added 200,000 net jobs, the sixth straight month of solid hiring.
Unemployment rates rose from November to December in a majority of U.S. cities. However monthly metro area unemployment data can be volatile because they aren't adjusted for seasonal variations, such as holiday hiring.
The government will report Friday on U.S. hiring and unemployment in January.
Below are the unemployment rates in December, for states and cities in the South:
| Metro Area Unemployment Rates, South | |||
| Unemployment rates by state and city | |||
| Figures in percentages | |||
| December 2011 | November 2011 | December 2010 | |
| Alabama | 7.5 | 8 | 8.8 |
| Anniston-Oxford | 7.5 | 7.9 | 8.7 |
| Auburn-Opelika | 6.4 | 6.7 | 7.5 |
| Birmingham-Hoover | 6.8 | 7.3 | 8.3 |
| Decatur | 7.4 | 7.8 | 8.9 |
| Dothan | 7.1 | 7.4 | 8.1 |
| Florence-Muscle Shoals | 7 | 7.4 | 8.4 |
| Gadsden | 7.6 | 8.1 | 8.6 |
| Huntsville | 6.4 | 6.8 | 7.2 |
| Mobile | 8.4 | 9.1 | 9.7 |
| Montgomery | 7.7 | 8.2 | 8.7 |
| Tuscaloosa | 7 | 7.4 | 8 |
| Arkansas | 7.4 | 7.2 | 7.8 |
| Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers | 5.6 | 5.5 | 6.1 |
| Fort Smith | 8 | 7.8 | 8.5 |
| Hot Springs | 7.4 | 7 | 8 |
| Jonesboro | 6.9 | 6.4 | 7.4 |
| Little Rock-North Little Rock-Conway | 6.5 | 6.3 | 6.8 |
| Pine Bluff | 9.4 | 9.2 | 9.8 |
| Delaware | 7.1 | 6.9 | 8.2 |
| Dover | 7.2 | 6.8 | 8.1 |
| Washington, D.C. | 10.2 | 10.2 | 9.2 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria-Md. | 5.5 | 5.4 | 5.7 |
| Florida | 9.7 | 9.8 | 11.7 |
| Cape Coral-Fort Myers | 10.2 | 10.5 | 12.6 |
| Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin | 7.1 | 7.2 | 8.6 |
| Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach | 10.1 | 10.3 | 12.3 |
| Gainesville | 7.7 | 7.9 | 8.5 |
| Jacksonville | 9.2 | 9.5 | 11.1 |
| Lakeland-Winter Haven | 10.7 | 11 | 12.6 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach | 9.6 | 9.4 | 11.8 |
| Naples-Marco Island | 9.5 | 10 | 11.5 |
| North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota | 9.8 | 10.1 | 11.9 |
| Ocala | 11.6 | 11.8 | 13.9 |
| Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford | 9.5 | 9.7 | 11.5 |
| Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville | 10.8 | 11.1 | 12 |
| Palm Coast | 13.9 | 14.1 | 15.7 |
| Panama City-Lynn Haven | 10.1 | 10 | 11.8 |
| Pensacola-Ferry Pass-Brent | 9.6 | 9.8 | 10.8 |
| Port St Lucie | 11.2 | 11.6 | 13.2 |
| Punta Gorda | 10 | 10.3 | 12.1 |
| Sebastian-Vero Beach | 11.4 | 12 | 13.7 |
| Tallahassee | 7.9 | 8.2 | 8.9 |
| Tampa-St Petersburg-Clearwater | 10 | 10.3 | 12.2 |
| Georgia | 9.4 | 9.2 | 10.2 |
| Albany | 9.9 | 9.6 | 10.5 |
| Athens-Clarke County | 7.3 | 6.9 | 7.6 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta | 9.4 | 9.2 | 10.1 |
| Augusta-Richmond County | 8.9 | 8.7 | 8.8 |
| Brunswick | 9.9 | 9.7 | 10.1 |
| Columbus | 8.9 | 8.6 | 9.4 |
| Dalton | 12.1 | 11.8 | 12.4 |
| Gainesville | 8 | 7.7 | 8.8 |
| Hinesville-Fort Stewart | 9.2 | 8.9 | 8.8 |
| Macon | 9.6 | 9.3 | 10.2 |
| Rome | 10.4 | 10.3 | 10.6 |
| Savannah | 8.8 | 8.4 | 9 |
| Valdosta | 8.6 | 8.6 | 8.9 |
| Warner Robins | 7.3 | 7.1 | 7.8 |
| Kentucky | 8.6 | 8.6 | 9.9 |
| Bowling Green | 7.3 | 7.4 | 8.4 |
| Elizabethtown | 8.6 | 8.7 | 8.9 |
| Lexington-Fayette | 6.9 | 7 | 8.1 |
| Louisville-Jefferson County | 8.7 | 8.8 | 9.8 |
| Owensboro | 7.5 | 7.2 | 8.8 |
| Louisiana | 6.4 | 6.5 | 7.2 |
| Alexandria | 6.2 | 6.3 | 6.8 |
| Baton Rouge | 6.5 | 6.5 | 7.2 |
| Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux | 4.3 | 4.5 | 5 |
| Lafayette | 4.6 | 4.9 | 5.6 |
| Lake Charles | 5.9 | 5.9 | 6.7 |
| Monroe | 6.9 | 6.9 | 7.6 |
| New Orleans-Metairie-Kenner | 6.4 | 6.5 | 7 |
| Shreveport-Bossier City | 5.9 | 6 | 6.5 |
| Maryland | 6.5 | 6.3 | 7 |
| Baltimore-Towson | 6.8 | 6.6 | 7.4 |
| Cumberland | 8 | 7.3 | 8.7 |
| Hagerstown-Martinsburg | 8.3 | 7.9 | 9.8 |
| Salisbury | 8.6 | 8.3 | 9.1 |
| Mississippi | 9.9 | 9.7 | 9.8 |
| Gulfport-Biloxi | 9.1 | 9 | 8.6 |
| Hattiesburg | 8.6 | 8.5 | 8.4 |
| Jackson | 7.9 | 7.8 | 7.7 |
| Pascagoula | 10.4 | 10.3 | 9.5 |
| North Carolina | 9.8 | 9.5 | 9.7 |
| Asheville | 7.9 | 7.6 | 7.7 |
| Burlington | 9.7 | 10.3 | 10 |
| Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill | 10.3 | 9.9 | 10.7 |
| Durham-Chapel Hill | 7.5 | 7.3 | 6.9 |
| Fayetteville | 9.7 | 9.4 | 8.9 |
| Goldsboro | 8.7 | 8.4 | 8.2 |
| Greensboro-High Point | 10 | 9.8 | 10.1 |
| Greenville | 9.4 | 9.2 | 9.4 |
| Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton | 11.9 | 11.6 | 12 |
| Jacksonville | 9 | 8.6 | 8.1 |
| Raleigh-Cary | 8 | 7.8 | 7.7 |
| Rocky Mount | 12.9 | 12.7 | 12.3 |
| Wilmington | 10.6 | 10 | 9.8 |
| Winston-Salem | 9.1 | 8.9 | 9.3 |
| Oklahoma | 6 | 5.8 | 6.6 |
| Lawton | 7 | 6.6 | 6.6 |
| Oklahoma City | 5.6 | 5.4 | 6.1 |
| Tulsa | 6.6 | 6.4 | 7.4 |
| South Carolina | 9.5 | 9.3 | 10.9 |
| Anderson | 8.8 | 9 | 10.4 |
| Charleston-Summerville | 7.9 | 7.8 | 9 |
| Columbia | 8 | 7.8 | 9.1 |
| Florence | 10.2 | 9.9 | 11.6 |
| Greenville-Mauldin-Easley | 7.7 | 7.6 | 9.1 |
| Myrtle Beach-Conway | 11.6 | 10.4 | 13.1 |
| Spartanburg | 9.3 | 9.1 | 10.7 |
| Sumter | 10.3 | 10.3 | 11.7 |
| Tennessee | 8.1 | 8.4 | 9.1 |
| Chattanooga | 7.3 | 7.4 | 8.3 |
| Clarksville | 8.7 | 9 | 9.8 |
| Cleveland | 8 | 8.4 | 8.9 |
| Jackson | 8.7 | 9 | 9.2 |
| Johnson City | 7.1 | 7.4 | 8.3 |
| Kingsport-Bristol-Bristol | 7.1 | 7.2 | 8.1 |
| Knoxville | 6.4 | 6.6 | 7.4 |
| Memphis | 8.8 | 9.2 | 9.4 |
| Morristown | 9.7 | 10 | 10.7 |
| Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro | 6.9 | 7.2 | 7.9 |
| Texas | 7.2 | 7.5 | 8 |
| Abilene | 6 | 6.2 | 6.2 |
| Amarillo | 4.9 | 5.1 | 5.4 |
| Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos | 6.3 | 6.6 | 6.9 |
| Beaumont-Port Arthur | 10.1 | 10.3 | 10.9 |
| Brownsville-Harlingen | 11.2 | 11.4 | 11.7 |
| College Station-Bryan | 5.5 | 5.7 | 6 |
| Corpus Christi | 6.9 | 7.1 | 8.2 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington | 7.1 | 7.4 | 8 |
| El Paso | 9.3 | 9.5 | 9.7 |
| Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown | 7.3 | 7.5 | 8.3 |
| Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood | 7.7 | 7.9 | 7.6 |
| Laredo | 6.9 | 7.1 | 8.1 |
| Longview | 5.9 | 6.3 | 6.9 |
| Lubbock | 5.3 | 5.5 | 5.9 |
| McAllen-Edinburg-Mission | 11.2 | 11.1 | 12.2 |
| Midland | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.7 |
| Odessa | 5 | 5.3 | 6.7 |
| San Angelo | 5.5 | 5.7 | 6.2 |
| San Antonio-New Braunfels | 6.8 | 7 | 7.2 |
| Sherman-Denison | 7.6 | 8 | 8.1 |
| Texarkana | 6.8 | 6.9 | 7.1 |
| Tyler | 7.3 | 8.1 | 7.8 |
| Victoria | 6.3 | 6.5 | 7.1 |
| Waco | 6.8 | 7 | 7.2 |
| Wichita Falls | 6.6 | 6.8 | 7.2 |
| Virginia | 6.1 | 5.7 | 6.4 |
| Blacksburg-Christiansburg-Radford | 6.3 | 5.9 | 7.2 |
| Charlottesville | 5 | 4.6 | 5.2 |
| Danville | 8.9 | 8.5 | 10.2 |
| Harrisonburg | 5.6 | 5.3 | 6 |
| Lynchburg | 6.5 | 6.1 | 7 |
| Richmond | 6.8 | 6.5 | 7.2 |
| Roanoke | 6.4 | 6 | 6.9 |
| Virginia Beach-Norfolk-Newport News | 7.1 | 6.7 | 7 |
| Winchester | 6.4 | 6 | 7 |
| West Virginia | 7.7 | 7.1 | 9.4 |
| Charleston | 7 | 6.4 | 8.7 |
| Huntington-Ashland | 7.7 | 7.4 | 8.8 |
| Morgantown | 5.5 | 4.9 | 6.4 |
| Parkersburg-Marietta-Vienna | 8 | 7.2 | 9.4 |
| Wheeling | 7.3 | 7.2 | 9.6 |
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