FedEx Corporation (FDX): Three Cities Where Unemployment Is Rising and Three With Big Job Gains

The biggest winners
While a few major cities are experiencing rising unemployment and many others are recovering slowly, three of Florida’s four major metro areas took the top spots in terms of year-over-year improvement for March. In the Jacksonville metropolitan area, unemployment declined by 2 percentage points, from 8.5% to 6.5%. The unemployment rate dropped by 2.1 percentage points (from 8.7% to 6.6%) in the Orlando metro area. Lastly, the Tampa Bay area saw the most improvement in the country, with the unemployment rate falling 2.2 percentage points, from 9.1% to 6.9%. Whereas all three of these metro areas had an unemployment rate above the national average of 8.2% in March, 2012, all three were below the national average of 7.6% in March, 2013.

Foolish bottom line
While there is always debate about why some areas prosper more than others, it is telling that the three most-improved metropolitan areas were all in Florida. In part, this could be the result of rebounding tourist demand. However, it’s possible that recently implemented government policies in Florida designed to improve worker training and promote an investment-friendly business climate are working. In reality, Florida’s rapid improvement can probably be attributed to a combination of these factors and pure luck. Whatever the cause of Florida’s strong job growth, residents are surely glad that they’re finally pulling out of the recession, unlike the Chicago and Memphis metro areas.

The article 3 Cities Where Unemployment Is Rising and 3 With Big Job Gains originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Adam Levine-Weinberg.

Fool contributor Adam Levine-Weinberg has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends FedEx.

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