State unemployment holds at 3.9 percent

California’s unemployment rate held steady in December at 3.9 percent, according to data.

The state added 12,600 non-agricultural jobs during December, the 118th consecutive month California has added jobs, the state Employment Development Department reported.

The December job gains were the result of growth in several job sectors, including 6,500 jobs in professional and business services, the department reported.

California has gained more than 3.4 million jobs since the current expansion started nearly 10 years ago. Its unemployment rate has been at 3.9 percent since October.

“December marked the end of an impressive year for the state’s economy with California adding over 300,000 jobs,” said Taner Osman, research manager at the UC Riverside Center for Economic Forecasting & Development. “That rate of growth far exceeds the national growth rate and was quicker than the state’s growth rate in 2018 of 1.6 percent.”

Locally, the Inland Empire’s unemployment rate was 3.5 percent, virtually unchanged from November, according to the department.