Going down: Payroll employment fell sharply in Louisiana in March, reversing a strong gain in February. The Associated Press reports, a separate survey also shows the state’s jobless rate fell to 5.7% from 5.8% in February. The unemployment rate was also below March 2016’s level of 6.2%. The surveys usually converge over the long run, but diverged widely in Louisiana in March.Payrolls fell by 8,500 to 1.98 million, and also fell below year-ago levels, a warning sign of economic weakness in what is many economists’ top labor market indicator. Louisiana’s jobless rate is fourth-highest among states, with New Mexico worst at 6.7%. The nationwide rate fell to 4.5% in March from February’s 4.7%. The U.S. Labor Department released figures today, adjusted to cancel out seasonal changes.
Holding steady: Louisiana’s volleying tally active oil and gas rigs remains unchanged this week. According to Houston-based oilfield services firm Baker Hughes, the state has 58 active rigs, just as it did last week. Louisiana had 47 rigs for the comparable week one year ago. Among major oil producing states, Alaska, Colorado, Pennsylvania, North Dakota and Wyoming each gained one rig this week. Oklahoma lost one and Texas saw its tally rise by six. The U.S. rig count rose by 10 this week from 847 to 857. For the comparable week last year, there were 431 active rigs exploring for oil and gas in the United States.
Going up: Weekly unemployment insurance claims in Louisiana for the week ending April 15 increased to 2,602 from the previous week’s total of 2,562, according to the latest data from the Louisiana Workforce Commission. For the comparable week a year ago, 2,791 claims were filed. The four-week moving average, a less volatile weekly claims, increased to 2,568 from the previous week’s average of 2,564. Continued unemployment insurance weeks claimed for the week ending April 15 increased to 21,714 from the previous week’s total of 21,681. Continued weeks claimed were below the comparable figure of 22,685 from one year ago.
