Michigan continues at top of US jobless figures

Michigan, with its heavy concentration of automobile plants, led national unemployment figures for the fifth straight month in July with 14.1 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics says. Following Michigan were Indiana, 11.3 percent; Alabama, 11.1 percent; Ohio, 10.2 percent; and Illinois, 9.9 percent. The states with the lowest jobless rates were Wyoming, 3.6 percent; Nebraska, 4 percent; and Oklahoma, 4.4 percent.

Nationally, the highest unemployment remained in the eastern North Central states -- from Illinois east to Pennsylvania -- where automotive industries and plants making durable goods are centered. Unemployment also was more than 8.5 percent in Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama, Maine, Oregon, and Alaska.