Michigan’s annual average unemployment rate falls in 2015

The state says Michigan’s annual average unemployment rate fell in 2015, marking the sixth straight yearly decline.

The Michigan Department of Technology, Management & Budget said Wednesday that the preliminary annual average unemployment rate was 5.4 percent last year, down from the 2014 annual rate of 7.3 percent. The 2015 measure was slightly above the 5.3 percent national annual rate.

The agency says Michigan’s annual unemployment rate has fallen each year since hitting a recent annual high of 13.7 percent in 2009.

Michigan’s annual jobless rate was the lowest in 2015 since the 5.2 percent rate posted in 2001.

The agency said the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.1 percent in December, unchanged from November and just above the national rate of 5 percent.  (AP)