From a year ago, unemployment down in 272 cities

The unemployment rate in 272 out of 372 U.S. cities was lower in June compared with the same month of 2012, the Labor Department said Tuesday. The Bureau of Labor Statistics said the unemployment rate was higher in 73 cities and unchanged in 27 from June 2012 to June 2013. The national unemployment rate for the month was 7.8 percent, not seasonally adjusted. In June 2012, the national rate was 8.4 percent, the bureau said. Among individual cities, Yuma, Ariz., and El Centro, Calif., experienced the highest unemployment rates among cities at 31.8 percent and 23.6 percent, respectively. Bismarck, N.D., had the lowest rate among U.S. cities with unemployment at 2.8 percent. On each end of the spectrum, the unemployment rate was higher than 10 percent in 51 cities and lower than 5 percent in 26 cities. Across the country, 207 cities had unemployment rates in June that were below the nation's 7.8 percent rate, while 158 had rates higher than the national rate. Seven cities had unemployment rates of 7.8 percent, the bureau said.