Labor markets remained strong in all three of Maine’s major urban areas in July.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics found unemployment low and edging lower in Bangor, Lewiston-Auburn and the Portland-South Portland labor markets.
The Portland-area jobless figure was the lowest: 2.8 percent. Lewiston-Auburn, at 3.4 percent, was still a bit lower than the state’s unemployment rate last month. Bangor was a bit higher than the state figure, at 3.7 percent.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics found even tighter job markets in New Hampshire. The Dover-Durham market had just a 2.4 percent jobless rate; in Portsmouth it was just 2.3 percent.
For all of Maine’s metro areas, unemployment percentages this July were lower than they were in July 2016.