Mississippi employer payrolls set new record high in May

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Preliminary data show Mississippi's employers had more people on the payroll than ever before in May.

Payrolls — which are economists top labor market indicators — rose from 1.15 million people in April to 1.17 million people last month.

A separate survey of households was less positive, with Mississippi's jobless rate rising to 5% from 4.9% in April. That's also above May 2018's 4.8%.

The number of people who reported having a job rose, but more slowly than the number of job seekers. The number of unemployed people in Mississippi rose slightly, to almost 63,000.

May's U.S. unemployment rate was level at 3.6% from April. That's the lowest nationwide rate since 1969.

The U.S. Labor Department released figures Friday, adjusted to cancel out seasonal changes.