California Jobless Rate Stalled at 9.8 Percent

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP)—California's jobless rate stalled at 9.8 percent this winter, with only a few new jobs created in January.

The state's Employment Development Department reported Tuesday that the unemployment rate remained unchanged in January and December

November's jobless rate was revised upward a tenth of a percentage point to 9.9 percent, when the rate dropped below 10 percent for the first time since the beginning of the recession.

Department spokeswoman Loree Levy says the good news is that revised figures show an overall gain of 327,400 jobs last year.

That's an increase of 101,500 jobs over previous estimates.

Preliminary figures, which may be revised later this week, showed increases since January 2011 in leisure and hospitality jobs, construction, and professional and business services.  The jobless numbers for February are due to be released next week.