California Adds Most Jobs in Country in July

California led the country in the number of new jobs added in July, according to a report published Friday by Matthew DeBord for Southern California Public Radio (SCPR).

According to DeBord, California added 25,200 new jobs in July - which accounts for a whopping 15 percent of all jobs added across the country last month, which was 163,000.

However, the irony is, California still leads the country in unemployment, as well, he said.

"This was a slightly less-good performance than June, but it continues a trend of California adding jobs at a faster clip than the nation as a whole," DeBord wrote.

According to a report last week from the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, in July, 44 states reported unemployment increases, two states and the District of Columbia reported unemployment decreases, and four states reported no change.

When compared to a year earlier, 44 states and the District of Columbia reported decreases in the unemployment rate, four states reported increases, and two states reported no change.

Regionally, the West Coast reported the highest unemployment rate - 9.4 percent - while the Midwest reported the lowest rate, 7.5 percent.

"The slow, agonizing slog out of the jobs crisis in California continues. At this rate, we're unlikely to equal even the national unemployment rate for another year," DeBord speculated.

Locally, unemployment in Solano County also dipped, from 11.9 percent in July of 2011 to 10.3 percent last month, according to the Employment Development Department. Total employment for all industries in the Solano region was 120,200, according to newly released data from the Employment Development Department.

The state's retail jobs also rose by 1,700 - much higher than in the previous 10 years, when the most new retail jobs created was 100.

"The state's economy is moving in the right direction, however, and once it gets moving — really moving — it could pick up speed," DeBrod speculated.