Mo. unemployment rate hits decade-high

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) -- The state's unemployment rate in July climbed to its highest mark in at least a decade.

U.S. Department of Labor figures reported Friday show that the number of people employed in Missouri dropped by 7,700 as the unemployment rate jumped to 6.4 percent. The figures are preliminary and are often adjusted later.

The labor department tracks unemployment rates going back to January 1998. Last month's unemployment rate is the highest over that period.

The number of Missouri jobs dropped in July for nearly every sector.

The biggest losses were in manufacturing and trade, transportation and utilities -- each losing more than 2,000 jobs. The only sector to add jobs in July was natural resources and mining with 100 more people last month.