RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — North Carolina’s unemployment rate fell to 3.7% in February. The state Commerce Department said on Friday that compares to January’s seasonally adjusted jobless rate of 3.9%. The state hasn’t logged a month-over-month rising rate since September 2020. The department says the number of those unemployed declined last month by over 10,150 people, while those working grew by 18,100.

The latest available figures for Wayne County show a rate of 4.0% in January, up from 3.4% in December of 2021.

Another counting format shows the leisure and hospitality services industry and professional and business services sector saw the largest percentage increases in employment in February. Gov. Roy Cooper’s office said recently that the state’s economy recovered to pre-pandemic employment levels last July.