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County jobless rate down to 5.4%

LISBON — The good news in April is Columbiana County’s unemployment rate declined to its lowest point in 19 months. The bad news is we still lag behind the rest of Ohio and the nation.

The county’s jobless rate in April was 5.4 percent, down from 6.8 percent the month before, according to figures released Tuesday by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services. The county unemployment rate was last this low in October 2015, when it was 5.2 percent.

Meanwhile, Ohio’s unemployment rate declined slightly in April to 5.1 percent, while the national rate also dropped to 4.4 percent. The number of county residents receiving unemployment benefits declined from 3,087 to 2,682, with the average benefit being $367 per week. An estimated 45,300 county residents had jobs in April.

Among the adjoining Ohio counties, the county’s jobless rate was higher than Stark (4.7 percent) and Carroll (5.3 percent) but lower than Mahoning (6 percent) and Jefferson (6.8 percent). The county had the 23rd highest unemployment rate among Ohio’s 88 counties.

The unemployment rate declined in every county, with Mercer County again having the lowest rate at 2.5 percent. Monroe County also continued to hold top spot, with an unemployment rate of 7.6 percent.

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