From Staff Reports 

Western North Carolina’s perennial leaders in the state for lowest unemployment rates — by county and metro area — again led the way in December, figures released Feb. 3 indicated.

Buncombe County dropped to 3.9 percent from November’s adjusted figure of 4 percent.

Meanwhile, the Asheville metro area, which includes Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson and Madison counties, fell to 4.2 percent from November’s adjusted 4.3 percent.

North Carolina Department of Commerce statistics also showed Henderson County as recording the state’s fourth-lowest rate at 4.3 percent, an improvement over November’s 4.5 percent.

State officials revised November’s figures to reflect updated data.

The numbers are not seasonally adjusted, meaning that government officials have not taken into account fluctuations that occur because of phenomena. such as seasonal hiring.

Economists emphasize that year-over-year comparisons are more significant than those month-over-month.

Job totals in the Asheivlle metro area also increased in December — over both November 2015 and December 2014 data.