Hiring picked up in 11 states last month compared with January and was mostly unchanged in the other 39, as stronger U.S. job gains benefited most of the country. Job gains in February were most robust in states outside the coastal regions that have fared the best since the Great Recession, the Labor Department report showed. In the past 12 months, job gains were strongest, in percentage terms, in Idaho, Utah and Nevada, all states in the Mountain region. The gains have mostly been outside manufacturing, with hiring up in construction, professional services such as accounting, and restaurants and hotels. Ohio and Pennsylvania have seen solid job gains in the past year.

Source: ABC News March 24, 2017 15:07 UTC