ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The unemployment rate in New Mexico has jumped to 12.7%.
That’s the highest rate the state has seen since the coronavirus pandemic began in the U.S. in March.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the figure is up from 8.4% in June.
That reverses a downward trend since April, when the rate was 11.3%.
The national unemployment rate was 10.2% in July, down from 11% in June.
State Workforce Solutions Secretary Bill McCamley says the main factor for New Mexico’s increase was that temporary furloughs for workers converted into layoffs.
State officials on Saturday reported 213 additional COVID-19 cases and four additional deaths, increasing New Mexico’s totals to 24,302 cases and 743 deaths.
