By Logan B. Anderson

Delaware’s unemployment rate continued its downward trend during the start of 2022.

According to the state Department of Labor’s monthly labor report, published Friday, Delaware’s unemployment rate decreased by 0.2% to 4.6% from January to February.

The First State finished last month with 498,200 in its civilian labor force, and over 5,000 more people were employed in February 2022 than in February last year.

Additionally, the leisure and hospitality industry, hard hit by the pandemic, had about 46,500 people employed last month. That is a 2,700-job increase from February 2021.

Wholesale and retail trade, along with the construction industry, increased by about 3,800 jobs, according to the report.

The wholesale and retail trade, along with the leisure and hospitality sectors, also saw the most improvement in February compared to last year. The education and health fields were the only segments of Delaware’s economy to see a drop, with a decline of 1,700 jobs.

There were 23,000 unemployed Delawareans in February, compared to 28,200 during the same month last year.

The U.S. unemployment rate was 3.8% in February, down from 4% in January. In February 2021, the national unemployment figure was 6.2%, and Delaware’s was 5.7%.

Delaware’s total nonfarm jobs increased by a net gain to 10,500, according to the state’s figures for last month.

Kent County led the state in unemployment in February with a percentage of 5.2. The rate in New Castle County was 4.5%, and it was 4.7% in Sussex.

The unemployment rate in Dover was 6.6%, and it was 6.3% in Wilmington. In Newark, the number was 3.4% for February.