Indiana's unemployment rate falls to 9.6 percent

INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana's unemployment rate fell to 9.6 percent in September, down from the state's 9.9 percent jobless rate in August.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says Indiana saw one of the nation's largest employment increases during September, when the state added about 4,400 jobs.

Indiana's seasonally adjusted September jobless rate of 9.6 percent put the state's jobless rate below the national rate for the first time since October 2008. The national jobless rate rose last month to a 26-year high of 9.8 percent as the country lost 263,000 jobs.

Indiana's jobless rate had been at 10 percent or higher since April before dropping below that level for August.