South Carolina’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate decreased for the second consecutive month from 6.6 percent in June to 6.4 percent in July, which matches the unemployment rate from July 2014.
Dillon County’s rate fell from 9.1 to 9.0. The county ranked eighth in the state in unemployment.
Employment levels from June to July declined by a modest 655 to 2,110,719. The number of unemployed individuals decreased in the last month by 5,284 to 143,447 and the labor force declined by 5,939 to 2,254,166.
From July 2014 to July 2015, the state’s employment level has increased by 59,672 and the number of unemployed has increased by 3,806. Over the year, the labor force has grown by 63,478 people.
“The unemployment rate dropping for the 2nd consecutive month is exciting for South Carolinians that continue to find job opportunities as the economy grows. Job levels are at near record highs for the state, but  we must ensure we continue to invest in building a trained workforce to fill the nearly 70,000 currently available jobs,” said Cheryl M . Stanton, director.
Nationally, the unemployment rate was unchanged at 5.3 percent.