JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri's unemployment rate again has climbed, rising to 8.3 percent in February from 8 percent in January.
Tuesday's report from the state Department of Economic Development shows Missouri continues to shed jobs amid the national recession. The state lost 6,400 jobs in February, with the biggest losses reported in professional and business services and in manufacturing.
But some sectors gained jobs. Private educational services, leisure and hospitality and government sectors all added more than 1,000 jobs in February.
Last month's jobless rate was Missouri's highest since January 1984.