Economy

California’s unemployment rate dropped to 5.4 percent in March, as the state added 4,200 non-agricultural jobs during the third month of the year. That figure was essentially unchanged from February – 5.5 percent – but it represented a drop of more than one percent year-over-year, according to data released Friday …

Apartment residents in the Inland Empire should expect to pay more in rent during the next two years. Average multifamily rental rates are expected to increase by $84 in Riverside and San Bernardino counties through 2018, according to the annual USC Casden Multifamily Forecast, which was released Wednesday. That’s a …

Manufacturing in the Inland Empire continued to grow during March, but not by very much. The region’s purchasing managers index last month was 51.7, down from 56.4 in February, according to the Inland Empire Report on Business, which was released Friday. That’s a classic “good news-bad news” scenario: on the …

The U.S. economy added 242,000 jobs in February, according to data released Friday. Despite that, the national unemployment rate remained at 4.9 percent, unchanged compared with January, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported in its monthly jobs study. Most of those job gains happened in health care [57,000], retail …

Manufacturing in the Inland Empire continued to expand during February. The region’s purchasing managers index was 56.5 last month, the second consecutive month that sector has grown, according to the Institute of Applied Research and Policy Analysis at Cal State San Bernardino. Fifty or above means the sector is expanding, …

Temecula has added more than 1,600 jobs dating back to the first quarter of 2014. The city in Southwest Riverside County now has 50,493 jobs, nearly as many as it’s ever had in its 26-year history, according to a city statement. “We are proud of the growth we’ve experienced in …