Unemployment rates in cities in the Midwest (AP)

Unemployment rates fell in three-quarters of large U.S. cities in November. The second straight month of declines for most major markets suggests the modest improvement in the job market is widespread. The Labor Department said Wednesday that unemployment rates fell in 277 metro areas. They rose in 71 and were unchanged in 29. In October, 281 cities reported having lower unemployment rates, the most in seven months. The metro area unemployment data can be volatile because they aren't adjusted for seasonal variations, such as hiring for the winter holiday. Nationwide, the unemployment rate fell to 8.6 percent in November, the lowest level in 2 1/2 years. Employers added about 120,000 net jobs. Still, a big reason the unemployment rate fell was because more people said they have given up on their job searches and dropped out of the work force. Below are the unemployment rates in November, for states and cities in the Midwest: Metro Unemployment, Midwest Unemployment rates by state and city Figures in percentages November 2011 October 2011 November 2010 Illinois 9.4 9.5 9.1 Bloomington-Normal 6.8 7.3 7 Champaign-Urbana 7.8 8.5 8.1 Chicago-Joliet-Naperville 9.6 9.6 9 Danville 9.9 10.8 10.8 Davenport-Moline-Rock Island 7.3 7.5 7.6 Decatur 9.9 10.3 10.5 Kankakee-Bradley 10.8 11.3 11.8 Peoria 7.9 8.3 8.9 Rockford 11.9 12.6 13.3 Springfield 7.3 7.8 7.2 Indiana 8.7 8.6 9.4 Anderson 10.3 9.9 10.7 Bloomington 7.1 7.3 7.1 Columbus 7 7.1 8.3 Elkhart-Goshen 11.3 11.3 12.6 Evansville 7.2 7.4 8.1 Fort Wayne 9.3 8.3 10.2 Indianapolis-Carmel 8.2 8.3 8.6 Kokomo 9.8 9.7 11.1 Lafayette 7.3 7.4 8 Michigan City-La Porte 9.9 10 10.7 Muncie 10 9.5 10.4 South Bend-Mishawaka 9.3 9.4 10.3 Terre Haute 9.9 9.7 10.2 Iowa 5.2 5.4 5.9 Ames 3.8 4.1 4.2 Cedar Rapids 5.4 5.6 5.8 Des Moines-West Des Moines 5.3 5.5 6 Dubuque 4.6 4.6 5.6 Iowa City 3.8 4.2 4.2 Sioux City 5.1 5 6.9 Waterloo-Cedar Falls 5 5.1 5.8 Kansas 6 6.2 6.8 Lawrence 5.3 5.4 6.2 Manhattan 5 4.9 5.5 Topeka 6.6 6.7 7.1 Wichita 7.1 7.2 8.4 Michigan 8.4 9.2 10.8 Ann Arbor 5.2 5.7 6.9 Battle Creek 6.9 7.6 9.5 Bay City 7.4 7.9 10 Detroit-Warren-Livonia 9.5 10.8 11.6 Flint 8.7 9.4 12 Grand Rapids-Wyoming 6.5 7.1 9 Holland-Grand Haven 6.5 7 9.3 Jackson 7.8 8.4 10.8 Kalamazoo-Portage 6.9 7.4 9.3 Lansing-East Lansing 6.4 6.7 8.3 Monroe 7.5 8.1 10.3 Muskegon-Norton Shores 8.4 9 11.5 Niles-Benton Harbor 8.2 8.3 10.6 Saginaw-Saginaw Township North 7.7 8.1 10.3 Minnesota 5.2 5.4 6.6 Duluth 6.1 6.1 7.3 Mankato-North Mankato 4 4.3 5.3 Minneapolis-St Paul-Bloomington 5.1 5.4 6.6 Rochester 4.2 4.5 5.3 St Cloud 5.2 5.1 6.3 Missouri 7.6 8 9.4 Cape Girardeau-Jackson 6.6 7.2 8 Columbia 5 5.5 6.1 Jefferson City 5.8 6.1 7 Joplin 6.6 7.2 8.6 Kansas City 7.4 7.8 9.1 St Joseph 6.6 7.2 8.4 St Louis 8.2 8.6 9.5 Springfield 6.7 7.3 8.5 Nebraska 3.6 3.8 4 Lincoln 3.2 3.4 3.6 Omaha-Council Bluffs 4.1 4.3 4.6 North Dakota 2.9 2.6 3.4 Bismarck 2.8 2.4 3.5 Fargo 3.1 3.1 3.6 Grand Forks 4.1 3.8 3.8 Ohio 7.6 8.4 9.3 Akron 7.2 8.1 9 Canton-Massillon 8.2 9.1 10.2 Cincinnati-Middletown 7.8 8.6 9.2 Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor 6.9 7.1 8.6 Columbus 6.6 7.6 8 Dayton 8.3 9.3 9.9 Lima 8.1 9.2 9.7 Mansfield 9.3 10.1 10.9 Sandusky 7.7 8.6 9.7 Springfield 8 8.9 9.9 Steubenville-Weirton 9.7 10.3 13.1 Toledo 8.4 9.3 10.2 Youngstown-Warren-Boardman 8.2 8.9 10.3 South Dakota 3.9 4 4.5 Rapid City 4.1 4.1 4.9 Sioux Falls 3.8 3.9 4.6 Wisconsin 6.6 6.8 7.2 Appleton 5.8 6.1 6.4 Eau Claire 5.8 5.9 5.9 Fond du Lac 6.2 6.4 6.8 Green Bay 6.4 6.5 6.8 Janesville 8.4 8.7 9.7 La Crosse 5 5.2 5.4 Madison 4.7 5.1 5 Milwaukee-Waukesha-West Allis 7.2 7.4 7.6 Oshkosh-Neenah 5.8 6.1 6.2 Racine 8.2 8.5 8.7 Sheboygan 6.7 6.8 7.6 Wausau 6.5 6.8 7.5

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120104/ap_on_bi_ge/us_metro_unemployment_midwest_glance

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