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Metro Houston’s unemployment rate rose to 4.6 percent in May from 4.3 percent in April, according to the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC). The increase reflects a familiar seasonal pattern, as the end of the school year and temporary spring jobs brings more job seekers into the labor market. Still, the rate remains below January’s recent high of 4.9 percent, suggesting the local labor market remains broadly stable. The same seasonal pattern appeared statewide, where unemployment rose from 4.0 percent to 4.3 percent over the month, while the national rate rose more modestly, from 4.0 percent to 4.1 percent, as the school year ends later in many parts of the country.
Unemployment rates were modestly higher year-over-year across all three geographies. Houston and Texas posted a 0.4 and 0.3 percentage-point increase, compared with a smaller 0.1-point rise nationally. The gains indicate some cooling in the labor market but remain well short of signaling a broad deterioration in overall conditions.
Across the Houston area, unemployment varied more widely by city. Among the 18 Houston-area cities where data are reported, unemployment rates ranged from 3.9 percent to 6.9 percent. Ten cities posted rates below the metro average: Alvin, Conroe, Friendswood, Fulshear, Galveston, Houston, League City, Pearland, Rosenberg, and Sugar Land. The remaining eight cities, Baytown, Deer Park, Katy, La Porte, Lake Jackson, Missouri City, Pasadena, and Texas City, reported higher unemployment rates.
Initial unemployment claims have increased since the start of the year, with the four-week moving average rising from 3,786 in the first week of January to 4,474 by early June. Still, claims are lower than their level of 4,775 recorded at the same point last year. Paired with a modestly higher unemployment rate, the data point to a job market with modestly more slack, driven more by slower hiring than by an increase in layoffs.
Prepared by Greater Houston Partnership Research Division.
Colin Baker
Manager of Economic Research
Greater Houston Partnership
[email protected]