Washington jobless rate holds steady at 5.8 percent

OLYMPIA – Washington state added 9,000 new jobs from February to March, but its unemployment rate remains at 5.8 percent for the fourth straight month.

Numbers released Wednesday by the state Employment Security Department show that during the one-year period ending in March, about 98,200 jobs were added.

The national unemployment rate for March was 5 percent. Unemployment in the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett area dropped from 5 percent in February to 4.9 percent last month.

Eleven industries expanded for the month, with the biggest gains seen in professional and business services, retail trade and wholesale trade. The only losses were seen in education and health services.