WASHINGTON — Unemployment rates rose in the District and the D.C. area in May, even as the national unemployment and jobless rates fell in the vast majority of cities.
The unemployment rate was at 3.6 percent in the D.C. area in May. That’s up from 3.4 percent in April.
In the District, the unemployment rate climbed to 5.5 percent, up from 5.4 percent in April.
The Baltimore metro area’s unemployment rate was unchanged in May, holding at 4.1 percent.
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics said May unemployment rates were down in 298 metro areas, rose in 66 and were unchanged in 24.
Ames, Iowa, along with Bismarck and Fargo, North Dakota, all tied for the lowest unemployment rate in May, at just 1.9 percent.
Denver and Nashville tied for the lowest unemployment rate for cities with a population of 1 million people or more. The two cities had an unemployment rate of 2.3 percent.
Cleveland still has the highest unemployment rate for a big city, with an unemployment rate of 5.8 percent in May.
