IE Business Daily Business news for the Inland Empire.
California employers added 13,600 jobs in November, enough to drop the unemployment rate to 5.3 percent, according to data released Friday.
The state added jobs during the four months before November, yet its unemployment rate never changed from 5.5 percent, so Friday’s numbers represent a slight breakthrough, the state Employment Development Department reported.
Trade, transportation and utilities added 9,600 jobs last month, the largest gain of any sector. Manufacturing also posted a gain 6,300 jobs.
Leisure and hospitality lost approximately 10,900 jobs, the largest decline of any job category, according to the department.
The Inland Empire recorded a 5.5 percent unemployment rate last month, down from a revised 6.1 percent on October. Employers in Riverside and San Bernardino added 9,900 jobs in November, another month of solid growth for the two-county region.
“The IE’s monthly job gains accounted for nearly three-fourths of the increase at the state level in November, a sign of the ongoing strength of the region’s job market,” said Robert Kleinhenz, director of research at the Center for Economic Forecasting and Development in a statement. “Many of the job gains are coming from growth in industries that serve local residents and businesses, but the region’s drivers, such as logistics and manufacturing, have also added jobs throughout much of the year.”
