Rochester, MN (KROC-AM News) - Seasonal factors helped push the unemployment rate higher in the Rochester area during the final month of last year.

The latest jobs report from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development put the jobless rate for Olmsted County in December at 2.6-percent. While the rate was up a half-point from November, it’s also a half a point lower than the unemployment rate for Olmsted County from December 2016.

The report shows Olmsted County was tied with Mower and Winona counties for the lowest jobless rates in the region, while the highest rate was found in Freeborn County at 4-percent. Every county in the region experienced an increase in unemployment in December and the largest percentage increases were found in Dodge and Houston counties, where the seasonally adjusted unemployment rates rose 1.1-percentage points last month.

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