Feb. Unemployment Rises in D.C. Area, Tops 10% in 7 States

February unemployment rose in the District, Virginia and Maryland, and seven states now top 10 percent unemployment, according to the February Labor Department numbers released this morning.

Here are the Washington area numbers for February:

- District: 9.9 percent (up from 9.2 percent in January)
- Maryland: 6.7 percent (up from 6.2 percent)
- Virginia: 6.6 percent (up from 6 percent)

The seven states with the highest unemployment are:

1. Michigan, 12 percent.
2. South Carolina, 11 percent.
3. Oregon, 10.8 percent.
4. North Carolina, 10.7 percent. (Tough times in the Carolinas.)
5. California, 10.5 percent. (Also a national leader in foreclosures.)
5. Rhode Island, 10.5 percent.
7. Nevada, 10.1 percent. (Another overbuilt state -- chiefly, Las Vegas -- with lots of foreclosures.)

Wyoming still has the nation's lowest unemployment rate, at 3.9 percent.

-- Frank Ahrens
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