Minnesota jobless rate improves to 4.5 percent in June

Minnesota's jobless rate dropped another tenth of a percentage point in June to 4.5 percent as employers added 8,500 jobs to their payrolls.

Private sector employment grew by 4,600 jobs, while government added 3,900.

Minnesota employment has grown at a 1.9 percent annual rate, matching the U.S. average over the year, according to statistics released Thursday by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.

The U.S. unemployment rate in June was 6.1 percent.

"Minnesota had positive employment growth in June, with more total jobs than ever before in our state's history," DEED Commissioner Katie Clark Sieben said in a statement. "The unemployment rate hasn't been this low since February 2007, while new claims for unemployment benefits dropped to their lowest level in nearly 14 years."

The government sector added the most of all industries in June, followed by education and health services (+ 3,500), trade, transportation and utilities (+ 2,200), financial activities (+ 600), information (+ 500), professional and business services (+ 300), and logging and mining (+ 200).

The following sectors lost jobs: other services (- 1,400), manufacturing (- 900), leisure and hospitality (- 300), and construction (- 100).