By 
Story by TIM SULLIVAN
For the fourth straight month, unemployment in the Rio Grande Valley has gone down. And for the first time in a long time, the highest unemployment rate in the state is not in the McAllen-Edinburg-Mission area. The October employment report from the Texas Workforce Commission shows the Beaumont-Port Arthur area with the most people out of work.
The jobless rate dropped in the Upper Valley to 5.5%, down from 5.9% in September. Unemployment in the Brownsville-Harlingen area dipped .1% to 5.1% last month. Statewide in October, the unemployment rate remained at 4.1%.
However, jobs were lost in almost half of the 11 economic industries measured by the commission. A large number of layoffs occurred in the Professional and Business Services sector. Among the industries hiring, the Financial Activities sector led the way.
