Minnesota added 11,300 jobs in July, nearly half of the gains in health care, the state reported Thursday.
Combined with revised data from June, state job gains over the past 12 months moved upward to 1.5 percent, within striking distance of the national average of 1.7 percent, according to data from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
After a slow start to 2016, the state has added 26,900 jobs since the beginning of April.
The Minnesota unemployment rate rose 0.1 percent in July to a seasonally adjusted 3.9 percent. The U.S. unemployment rate was 4.9 percent in July.
"Last month's job gains pushed seasonally adjusted employment in Minnesota above the 2.9 million mark for the first time in state history," said DEED Commissioner Shawntera Hardy. "The state has gained 21,000 jobs in the past two months alone, a strong indication that the economy is continuing to grow."
Health care led all sectors, adding 5,300 jobs in July. The arts, entertainment and recreation industry added 2,200 jobs. Gains in most other industries were modest, while private education, manufacturing, management and real estate all lost jobs.
Estimated unemployment for black workers dropped to 8.7 percent, compared to 15.5 percent 12 months ago. Hispanic unemployment was 5 percent, and white unemployment was 2.9 percent.
The Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area continues to be the source of most of the state's job growth. Of the 11,300 jobs added in the month, 9,500 were in the Twin Cities.
The state's other four metro areas — Rochester, St. Cloud, Mankato and Duluth-Superior — all saw job growth in July.
Adam Belz • 612-673-4405 Twitter: @adambelz
