New Hampshire's unemployment rate remained unchanged in May at 5 percent, the same as in April, the Economic and Labor Market Information Bureau said Tuesday.

The number of employed residents slipped by 410 to 704,290, according to seasonally adjusted estimates for May from the unit of N.H. Employment Security.
But employment in May was 7,220 higher than the same month a year ago, when the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 5.4 percent.

Nationally, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for May 2012 was 8.2 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from the April rate but still 0.8 percentage points less than the May 2011 rate.

For the state, the number of unemployed residents decreased by 310 over the month to 36,740, which also was 3,230 fewer than in May 2011.

The total labor force decreased by 720 to 741,030 from April to May 2012 but was still 3,990 higher than May 2011.
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