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Chicago Unemployment Falls To 8.7 Percent In March

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The unemployment rate in the Chicago area fell to 8.7 percent in March from 9 percent in February and from 11.1 percent in March 2010, the Illinois Department of Employment Security said Thursday.

The rate fell in every metropolitan area for a record seventh straight month and in every county for the fourth consecutive month.

The Chicago area added 44,800 jobs over the year, the agency said.

Since the recession began in 2007, the unemployment rate in the Chicago area peaked at 11.6 percent in January 2010. In March 2008, the rate was 5.5 percent.

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