BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho's unemployment rate has dropped below 5 percent for the first time in nearly six years.

The Idaho Department of Labor in a statement on Friday says the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 4.9 percent in May. Total employment in the state is more than 741,000, setting a record for the ninth consecutive month. The state's labor force participation rate is 63.8 percent of all residents over age 15.

The number of jobless workers in the state dropped below 38,000 for the first time since July 2008. Financial services, health care, real estate, information, natural resources, mining, hotels and restaurants all generated jobs at above the five-year average for May Idaho's economy has added 29,000 jobs since January.

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