Joblessness slightly higher

Missouri’s unemployment rate edged up in October to 3.1%, but a state labor analyst says Missouri’s economy remains strong. Noel Blythe with the State Economic Development Department points out that, even in the two big cities, unemployment rates remain under 3.5%. Lay-offs in the printing and publishing industries have hit Linn County hard, leaving it with the only double-digit unemployment rate at 10.4% percent. Nodaway County in northwest Missouri has the lowest unemployment rate at .9%.