Area Development
Average annual unemployment increased in 31 states, dropped in 18 states, and remained the same in one state, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports in its 2010 Annual Average Summary of Regional and State Unemployment. Unemployment rates rose in three of four U.S. regions.

Unemployment in the West experienced the greatest increase of 0.9 percentage points. The South followed with a 0.4 point rise and the Northeast with a 0.3 point increase. The West's jobless rate was the only regional one to measure significantly above the national 9.6 percent unemployment rate. Unemployment in the West was 11.1 percent in 2010.

On a state level, Nevada had the highest annual unemployment rate of 14.9 percent, followed by Michigan with 12.5 percent and California with 12.4 percent. Unemployment rose the most in Nevada, which saw jobless levels increase 2.4 percentage points, followed by Idaho with 1.6 points and New Mexico and West Virginia each with 1.4 points.