MT unemployment lower than national average
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News from the office of Governor Gianforte
HELENA — Governor Gianforte recently announced the unemployment rate in December marked a year of historically low unemployment, with a record 42 consecutive months of unemployment at or below 3.4 percent.
“In Montana, our economy is strong, resilient, and full of good-paying jobs,” Gov. Gianforte said. “With our historic stretch of unemployment and with wage growth outpacing inflation in Montana over the past four years, our state continues to be a model for the nation.”
Montana’s unemployment rate fell to 3.1 percent in December, down from 3.2 percent in the previous month, and a full point lower than the national unemployment rate.
Total employment (which includes payroll, agricultural, and self-employed workers) was mostly unchanged in December and the number of unemployed workers decreased by 715. Payroll jobs increased by 100 in December, with gains in the accommodations and food service industry offset by declines in transportation, warehousing, and utilities.
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) increased 0.4 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis in December. The index for energy rose 2.6 percent in December, accounting for over 40 percent of the increase in the monthly all-items index. The all-items index rose 2.9 percent for the 12 months ending in December. Core inflation, or the index for all-items less food and energy, rose 0.2 percent in December for a 12-month increase of 3.2 percent.
