Arkansas' unemployment rate was 4.3% in March, up from 3.9% a year earlier, per data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
The state's labor force hit 1.45 million, while nonfarm payroll jobs were about 1.34 million.
The big picture: Year-over-year, payroll jobs were up modestly, with the biggest gains in leisure and hospitality, education and health services. Manufacturing jobs declined more than 1%.
What they're saying: UALR economist Michael Pakko wrote in a blog post that the state's annual job growth rate was 0.5% but remains better than the national pace.
"By this measure of growth, both Arkansas and the U.S. have been experiencing a notable downward trend," Pakko said.
The bottom line: Arkansas' economy is still adding workers and jobs, but the pace has cooled, and the state's growth is leaning more on services than on manufacturing.
