RI jobless rate ticks down again

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- The unemployment rate in Rhode Island is continuing to inch downward, with a slight decline posted for the sixth straight month.

The state Department of Labor and Training said Thursday that the jobless rate was 10.4 percent in October, down from 10.5 percent the month before.

Still, the number of Rhode Island jobs was down 2,500, to 457,000, from the revised September estimate.

The number of employed Rhode Island residents was up 5,200 from September, to 504,700. The state says that's the largest monthly increase ever recorded. The size of the labor force was also up 5,300, to 563,400.

The U.S. unemployment rate in October was 7.9 percent.

The jobless rate in Rhode Island a year ago was 11.2 percent.