The local unemployment rate fell more than half a point in January.
The unemployment rate for the Belleville-Quinte West Census Metropolitan area which includes Belleville, Quinte West, Deseronto-Tyendinaga and Stirling-Rawdon was 10 per cent last month, down from 10.6 in December.
Nationally, the unemployment rate fell three-tenths of point to 6.5 per cent, despite Canada’s economy shedding 25,000 jobs in the first month of
the year.
Statistics Canada says a drop in the number of people looking for work drove January’s rate down.
Both Kingston and Peterborough’s numbers also dropped slightly.
The unemployment rate in Kingston dropped from 6.2 to 6.0 per cent.
Peterborough’s rate was 6.6 per cent in January, one-tenth of a point lower.
Ontario’s rate fell from 7.9 per cent in December to 7.3 per cent last month.
