The smoothed seasonally adjusted unemployment rate estimates have been updated by the BLS. As described in a previous post, the smoothed seasonally adjusted (SSA) estimates are processed using an algorithm that incorporates a long-run trend smoothing procedure. Hence, the estimates show less month-to-month variability than data that produced using only seasonal adjustment techniques.
The table below shows that unemployment rates declined in all of Arkansas MSAs in January. The largest monthly declines (-0.4 percentage points) were registered for Fayetteville, Memphis, and Pine Bluff.
As shown in the figure below, the month-over-month declines in unemployment continue a trend that emerged in the final months of 2011. The recent declines have largely reversed the run-up in unemployment rates that we saw during the summer months.