California's Unemployment Rate Dips To 6.3 Percent

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California's unemployment rate dipped slightly in April to 6.3 percent as the economic recovery created nearly 30,000 new jobs.

The state Employment Development Department reported Friday that the rate fell from 6.5 percent in March. A year ago the rate was 7.8 percent.

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California still exceeds the U.S. unemployment rate of 5.4 percent. Nearly 1.2 million Californians are unemployed, though that is a quarter-million fewer than last year.

The state added 29,500 nonfarm payroll jobs last month, for a total of nearly 1.9 million new jobs since the economic recovery began in 2010. That followed a revised gain of 40,500 jobs in March.

Eight categories added a total of nearly 36,000 jobs in April. Professional and business services had the largest increase.

Financial activities saw the biggest drop in jobs.