Unemployment rate drops in US state of Indiana

• Source: Xinhua
• [07:33 September 21 2009]
• Comments

The unemployment rate in the US state of Indiana is now below 10 percent for the first time in five months, according to the latest statistics report of the state seen here on Saturday.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the state reported that Indiana's unemployment rate dropped to 9.9 percent last month. Butit said the drop in the number of unemployment may not necessarily be a sign that the economy is getting better.

Marc Lotter, spokesman for the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, told reporters that decreases in unemployment are always welcomed news. "We hope this is a trend but we're really thinking we should wait for the next few months to see if this is actually a trend or just a one month survey anomaly," he said.

Indiana has been hit hard over the past year with massive layoffs in manufacturing and steel. Some economists fear Indiana's unemployment rate could peak at 11 percent or more before a permanent decline takes place.