Only 1 Bay Area county has unemployment above state average

SAN FRANCISCO -- All but one of the nine Bay Area counties had unemployment rates in July below the statewide average, officials with the state's Employment Development Department said Friday.

Solano County, with a 6 percent rate, was the only county with a higher rate than the state's 5.5 percent, which was up 0.1 percent from June.

The lowest unemployment rate was in San Mateo County, where only 3.4 percent of the workforce was unemployed. The unemployment rate in Marin County and in San Francisco was also less than 4 percent.

The San Francisco Bay Area has recorded low unemployment rates in the past year or more as the technology industry fuels a good portion of the economy.