The London area unemployment rate saw a slight decrease for the first time in months.
Statistics Canada figures released Friday show the jobless rate in the London census metropolitan area, which includes London, St. Thomas, Strathroy and other surrounding communities, dropped to five per cent in March, down from 5.4 per cent in February.
Despite the decline in the unemployment rate, the region actually lost 2,000 jobs last month, according to the StatsCan report. The total number of people employed sits at 251,100.
Nationally, the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.8 per cent in March, even though the economy shed 7,200 jobs. There were gains in public and self-employed positions last month, but the number of private sector employee positions dropped by 17,300.
Provincially, the jobless rate rose slightly to 5.9 per cent, up from 5.7 per cent the previous month. That slight increase came as more people were out looking for work.
